Did not see the posted yet, so I figured I would pass it on for those that did not hear about this. Also, I know it is no longer PGA (Paramounts Great Amerca), but that 3 letter code fits nice in the subject line. I also did not want to put just "Great America" and confuse people on here. To be clear, this happened at the Santa Clara Great America.
Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_13034723
Rescue team removes 24 people stuck on Great America ride for four hours
By Bruce Newman, Howard Mintz, April Dembosky and Joe Rodriguez Mercury News
Posted: 08/10/2009 09:51:24 PM PDT
Updated: 08/10/2009 11:16:17 PM PDT
Great America introduced a new adventure to 24 thrill seekers Monday — their high-speed Invertigo roller coaster that ground to a torturous halt near its zenith and remained stuck for hours in the sweltering afternoon heat, suspending riders as high as 80 feet in the air before they were rescued by firefighters.
The Santa Clara amusement park's Invertigo roller coaster, which ordinarily specializes in turning people upside down, instead got stuck on the tracks, stranding two dozen people for an afternoon just as they began the adrenaline-filled ascent to the top of the ride. Park officials and state investigators are trying to determine why the ride malfunctioned. The coaster stopped about 1 p.m., leaving the riders strapped in their seats, legs dangling in the air while firefighters hoisted basket-topped ladders to retrieve them one by one. It took more than four hours in 95-degree heat before the last relieved patron reached the ground.
"It was frightening. It was scary," said 14-year-old Dennis Espinoza, of San Lorenzo. "We thought we were going to die."
The first thing he did when safely back on ground: Rush to the bathroom. Then he was ready for other rides.
Carmelita Espinoza, the teen's mother, was alerted by park officials while her son remained suspended on the ride.
"I was so nervous," she said. "I just cried. I wanted to go there."
Janet Armstrong, a 39-year-old Oakland woman who was next in line to go on
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the ill-fated ride, watched as the Invertigo's operator cringed when the trains screeched to an unexpected halt.
"I knew the sound wasn't good," she said later.
The mishap, the third on the ride since 2000, rippled through the park and on the Internet, which buzzed with reports of the idled roller coaster. Great America shut down most of its major rides after Invertigo went inert, drawing groans and complaints from park visitors, many of them students trying to squeeze the last joys out of summer before school begins. Some patrons said park officials tried to discourage gawkers and also tried to shoo away people trying to photograph the bizarre scene.
"We spent so much money and we've only been able to go on two rides," said Haley Geiger, of Danville, who went to Great America with her sister, Carly. "They don't want anybody to see what's happening."
Park spokesman Jim Stellmack had little information to provide on the ride's history, or on possible refunds for park visitors who got less than they bargained for, but he did say all park rides are inspected each morning. However, Santa Clara Deputy Fire Chief Augie Wiedeman said the stranded roller coaster riders remained calm throughout the rescue effort, and no medical problems were reported. "For most of them, they were eager to get back to the rides," he said.
Two ladder trucks — one with a basket that can accommodate two or three people and is capable of reaching a height of 110 feet — brought the riders down, ending the effort shortly before 6 p.m.
Invertigo was near its 28-person capacity when it stopped, half of the riders facing forward, looking up to the sky while the others, with their seats facing backward, looking down the ride's tracks. The firefighters had a delicate task for the riders facing backward because their seats were tilting toward the ground and they could have fallen when their safety harnesses were released.
Invertigo has had two similar breakdowns in the past, the most recent in 2001 when it jammed at 138 feet, the steepest point of the ride. In 2000, the roller coaster encountered a shutdown similar to Monday's unwelcome mishap when 25 people were left dangling in their seats for about 30 minutes, none of them injured. That was a less dramatic rescue, however, as park officials were able to back the coaster down to the starting platform.
Invertigo climbs to a 138-foot drop, reaching a top speed of 50 miles per hour, leaving riders upside down six times during the whirlwind trip. When it opened in 1998, it gave Great America the distinction of being the first amusement park in the nation with two inverted roller coasters.
"These are machines, and they do break down," said Erika Monterroza, a spokeswoman for California Division of Occupational Safety and Health. She said inspectors would immediately investigate the breakdown, and an inquiry into the incident could be completed in a matter of days or as long as several months, depending on the cause of the breakdown.