Posted on 04/13/2006 9:22:54 AM PDT by rawhide
MIAMI — A 49-year-old woman died Wednesday, a day after becoming ill after riding "Mission: Space" at Walt Disney World's — the second death in less than a year related to the Epcot ride so intense that it has motion sickness bags and several riders have been treated for chest pain.
The woman became ill after riding the rocketship ride Tuesday afternoon and was transported to Celebration Hospital, where her condition worsened and she died, Walt Disney World spokeswoman Kim Prunty said in a statement.
The woman's identity and hometown were not immediately released, and Prunty said no additional information would be released Wednesday night.
A spokeswoman for the hospital said no information about the woman was available.
The state Bureau of Fair Rides Inspection has been notified and will monitor an inspection of the ride, Disney officials said.
"We have closed the attraction to reconfirm proper operation of the ride," Prunty said.
Messages left at Florida's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, which oversees the Bureau of Fair Rides Inspection, and the Orange-Osceola Medical Examiner's Office were not immediately returned.
One warning sign posted in 2004 in front of the ride read: "For safety you should be in good health, and free from high blood pressure, heart, back or neck problems, motion sickness or other conditions that can be aggravated by this adventure."
(Excerpt) Read more at ajc.com ...
That ride is history.
Based on the forthcoming lawsuits it will probably make legal history as well.
My husband and son rode that about a month ago. They talked about it for days afterward--it was that intense!
Some people die after a big breakfast...
Sometimes it's just your time.
You're right, but in this litigation-crazy nation of ours, that won't matter.
It gave me a headache for hours. I'm getting sick just thinking about it.
The article is purposefully vague about the woman's illness. I wonder what happened. It's perfectly conceivable that young or middle-aged people have undiagnosed heart problems that get tested to the limit by a ride like M:S.
How do hard-core upside down roller coasters not cause deaths, but this "simulation" ride does?
Is it that people in poor health avoid the roller coasters, but don't think twice about getting onto these other types of ride?
Not only that,but some Florida tort lawyer is gonna be able to buy a lot more oceanfront property in Palm Beach when this is over.
Oh - I know there'll be lawsuits... doesn't make it right.
"In February, a 70-year-old man was injured while attempting to board the park's Peter Pan ride. "
Not Peter Pan!!!!
It's a simulator.
It's not like she was really knocked around.
My 92 year old grandmother road it. Of course, she also can walk all over EPCOT in August.
I thought the Rockin' Roller-coaster at MGM was much worse, but that may have been the Aerosmith screaming in my head that made me nauseous. I should have gotten a medal for surviving that ride!
Woody Allen had an old joke about a pain in his chest. He was too cheap to go to a doctor, but he was worried. Then he found out his friend had the exact same pain in the chest. Woody convinces his friend to go to the doctor.
Tests come back fine. His friend is out $50, but Woody feels great. Next day, he calls his friend, but the wife answers and says that the friend is dead. Woody panics, checks into the hospital and gets $500 worth of tests (it's an old joke). Turns out the tests can't find the problem.
Woody thinks he's got a death sentence that doctors can't diagnose. He calls he wife up and asks "Did he suffer much?" The wife says, "No. The bus hit him, and that was it."
Me, I think life is scary enough without these terrifying amusement park rides (I'm a big scaredy-cat). Seems like many in our society crave more and more adrenaline-spiking experiences. I don't object to these rides as long as the dangers and risks are clearly posted, but I'd think there's a considerable risk that the park will be driven into bankruptcy by some suit-happy lawyer.
Sadly, I think you're right. Shame, too--since its fun. As a rule, I avoid what I call "vomit rides" but I rode Mission Space shortly after it opened. Liked it so much, I got a fast pass and went on it a second time.
Now, I'm definitely in what you call good shape (my first triathlon will be this May!) and even I was a little dizzy and disoriented after the ride. Its clearly stated out front that people in poor health should not ride--but I think a lot of people, especially these days, have no idea just what kind of shape they're in.
"Knocked around" isn't an issue but the G forces are intense.
We did the Rockin Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror back-to-back. We were all woozy after that!
This is a centrifuge, it's continuously exposing you to the G's.
A roller coaster is only per 1 or 2 turns where you might see this amount of force.
I worked for the company that designed M:S. I didn't work in the centrifuge division but I can say that Disney came in with a 2 part contract so that they could back out after the design was done, they did and they found a cheaper manufacturer to build it.
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