Italy Strikes Again! (accident)

[FParker185]

well the fine folks at RideTek opened their first ever coaster last week at Tivoli Freheiden in Denmark, which I'm actually visiting next year. But less than 7 days after it opens, it looks something like this..

http://mjimg.no.publicus.com/apps/pbcsi ... f&maxw=470

That used to be a 5 car train, the front car is smashed in pieces under the track(not shown) and 2 people were hurt very seriously but survived.

http://www.ridetek.it/en/prod_rc_energizer.htm

That is the ride model and the website for this outstanding example of why parks need to stop buying italian. Worth nothing the ride was actually fabricated by Sartori who made that Miami ride that collapsed in south africa that was captured on video that I posted here.

And last but not least here is a witness statement...

This evening (Friday) there was a serious accident at Tivoli Friheden. as the first car of the new coaster "Cobra" broke of. I was at Friheden, waiting in line to Tyfonen, at the time and I'm an eyewitness to the accident. I was standing on the side that is closest to the first Inversion of Cobra (about 20 meters away) and I claim that I had the best view of the accident.
The thing that happened was that the train stalled on the first inversion, while the train stopped for a moment at the top the inversion the first care broke of the train with 2 passengers and fell down to the ground (the accident didn't happen from the tallest point of 25 meters, as the TV2 News says at the moment).
The car lands on it's back and I can delightfully see persons move. The rest of the train goes back and forth (as a pendulum). A couple of workers jump down to take care of it. TV2 News says that there was 4 wounded and no casualties. I guess that they are talking about the 2 in the first car and the 2 in the second car, that might have been hit by the first car. After the accident I left the park so I wouldn't be in the way for the many ambulance's, etc.

I would guess, by what I saw; that the train construction wasn't strong enough to hold for a roll-back in that inversion, but I can't confirm anything. I have also heard people talk about that the coaster have been closed, just before, due to technical problems.

The accident happened at 22:52 by my cell phone.

I felt a bit scared to actually see such a serious accident on a roller coaster, it was almost surreal! Especially since I rode it 45 minutes earlier.

I really think that Friheden will loose a lot of visitors due to this.
-end-

Actually one final thing, here is a video in Danish, but it has lots of video of the damaged coaster
http://www.tv2regionerne.dk/reg2005/vid ... ?Id=432739

[zjohn1988]

someone hasn't been doing their inspections....

[FParker185]

I dont think it's a matter of inspection, the coaster has been operating for literally 6 days, it's got to be an engineering error or materials defect (Italian ride manufacturers are notorious for using the absolute most substandard materials they can get their hands on, and workmanship is nonexistant)

[cycamps]

^After seeing that, it's definitely believable.
I want to say it's unfortunate that their first coaster had to have an accident like this, but if it was preventable, I don't really feel sorry for the company.

[demonbulleagle]

and thats the reason i love B&M coasters

[Coaster Justin]

Zamperla's Italian and I think they're pretty solid manufacturers.

[demonbulleagle]

well after this i wouldnt be so shure......

[FParker185]

Zamperla is probably one of the best, but they can still be pretty shady. Afterall Trailblazer was removed for a reason.

Also Zamperla makes alot of smaller family rides most cloned off other's designs which helps them. Alot of Zamperla's original rides are pretty crappy. RotoShake and Mixer are prime examples. Ride expierience is good on those, but both are mechanical nightmares.

[FParker185]

Update:

RIDE TEK Engineering, in order to avoid unpleasant misunderstandigs and/or misinterpretations about what happened in Denmark, preferes to specify the following notes:

1 - that we are deeply sorry for what happened to the people that suffered traumas which, thank God, have not been serious
2 - that, leaving out the accident's dynamics, mentioned from all the mass-media, its causes are still completely unknown and will remain so until the execution of material's assesments.
3 - that the piece broken for no obvious reason (considering the official informations, in fact, the piece has broken at the top of the lift without being subjected to any apparent effort) has been object, during the years, of "design review" from international certifications agencies, and is working from about 10 years on others similar attractions
4 - that Ride Tek Engineering is the attraction DESIGNER and not the manufacturer's one; so, who wants to obtain official informations or press releases, should refere to the manufacturer himself or to the Danish Park.

[BP317]

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[BP317]

Zamperla is probably one of the best, but they can still be pretty shady. Afterall Trailblazer was removed for a reason.

Also Zamperla makes alot of smaller family rides most cloned off other's designs which helps them. Alot of Zamperla's original rides are pretty crappy. RotoShake and Mixer are prime examples. Ride expierience is good on those, but both are mechanical nightmares.

Zamperla is very good at working with fiberglass which makes it easy for a park to say "make this ride look like this," easy to theme.

On the other hand they make the absolute worst coasters known to man (Volare).

[Coaster Justin]

^ Wow, I thought the Worst Coaster was A Vekoma Boomerang

[FParker185]

sfgam07 has it exactly right, the only reason anyone buys any italian rides is due to the themeing/artwork that most Italian companies offer. Italians have always been known for art and the like. Complex mechanical contraptions... not so much.

Believe it or not Vekoma makes some of the higher quality rides out there. They may be somewhat rough, all mostly clones, and cheap looking, but in the end most are very safe and reliable. Was just a phase Vekoma went though in the late 90's and early 00's of trying to innovate which didn't work out so well with DV, Tilt Coaster and Flying Dutchman. New management is a lot better though. And now off to the East Coast to ride all sorts of Vekoma rides