Many water park patrons underestimate the injury risks from inner tube and raft rides. Many of these rides, whether slides or “lazy river” rides, create a risk of surprisingly serious injuries like abrasions, head injuries, and drowning. A recent Fourth of July injury on Virginia’s King’s Dominion water park’s “Tornado” ride, in the “Soak City” part of the park highlights these dangers.
If you or a loved one was injured in an amusement park ride anywhere in the country, call the amusement park injury attorneys at Reiff Law Firm. Even seemingly safe water park rides like inner tube rides and water slides can still cause quite severe injuries, and always have a risk of drowning. Call our lawyers today at (215) 709-6940 for a free consultation on your water park accident case.
Inner Tube Slide Injuries
The “Tornado” ride that caused the woman’s injuries on Independence Day is an inner tube/raft slide. On this ride, the riders are given a large inner tube that can seat up to four people. The riders are then sent down a slide at high speeds into a large basin, where they drift back and forth until falling out into a pool. With a nearly vertical drop from the slide into the basin, riders have a huge risk of flipping. After coming out into the basin, if riders have fallen from their tube, they still have to travel a few yards before being thrown from the ride into the pool.
During this trip, riders could bump their heads or other body parts on the side of the slide or the basin. Their tube could also flip, sending them down without the padding of a raft. Like the woman injured on the Fourth of July, riders can be knocked unconscious by blows to the head and even break bones. The woman reportedly suffered a broken toe, shoulder, and collarbone. She also fell unconscious after hitting her head and suffering a concussion, which nearly leads to her drowning.
Even though these rides are meant to be slippery, rubbing your body (rather than an inner tube) along the surface of the slide could lead to deep, bleeding abrasions.
Luckily for the injured woman, lifeguards were appropriately posted on duty. Three lifeguards were able to come to her rescue, with one stationed in the ending pool, one walking around, and one on a lifeguard stand near the pool. On busy days or days with improper staffing, a rider might not be so fortunate. Additionally, though inner tube rides use floatation devices, they are not life-saving devices and are no substitute for good swimming skills. Relying upon an inner tube to save a rider’s life is an example of poor supervision and could lead to drowning.Compensation for Water Park Injuries
While there have been no reported updates on the condition of the woman injured on the Fourth of July, we wish her a swift recovery. For her and others injured on water park rides, there may be options for recovering compensation for your injuries. Not only can injuries like the ones she suffered lead to expensive medical bills, but you may also have to miss work because of your injuries and may face intense pain and suffering.
Compensation may be available for any injuries you suffer. Compensation for medical expenses may be able to cover the costs of ambulance rides, X-Rays, MRIs, surgery, casts, physical therapy, and more. Compensation for lost wages can cover all of the paychecks you miss because of your injuries. That often includes wages that you missed while undergoing treatment or recovering from your injuries, as well as future lost wages if you are unable to return to work because of severe injuries. Lastly, compensation may be available to directly pay for your pain and suffering. This is usually one of the highest areas of compensation and is based on your subjective experiences. The rules of your state may limit your pain and suffering, but our attorneys will fight for the highest compensation available on your case.
If you were injured at an amusement park, the park’s legal team or guest relations office might reach out to you about your case. It is important that you do not talk to these individuals until you have talked to an attorney about your case. While they may initially seem worried and claim they want to help, any information you give them might be used against you later if you take your case to court. Additionally, they may make offers to give you free passes or offer to pay for your medical bills outside of court. Accepting these gifts may prevent you from later taking your case to court. Never accept anything from the party who injured you until you talk to an attorney about how much your case is worth.
Amusement Park Injury Attorneys
The water park injury lawyers at Reiff Law Firm fight to get compensation for injured water park and amusement park guests. If you or a loved one was hurt on a water ride like the “Tornado,” talk to an attorney about your case, today. Call (215) 709-6940 today for a free consultation on your case.
