Girl Critical After Riding Disney's 'Tower Of Terror' Ride (WDW) - WKMG, 7/12/05

[Darkbeer]

http://www.local6.com/news/4713504/detail.html

QuikQuote: A 16-year-old girl is in critical condition after riding the "Twilight Zone Tower Of Terror" ride at Disney-MGM Studios at Walt Disney World, according to Local 6 News. Officials said a girl from Britain exited the ride Tuesday at about 9:50 a.m. and complained that she was not feeling well, Local 6 News reported. She sat down with her mother in the theme park but her condition continued to worsen, an Orange County Sheriff's spokesman said.
Disney medics came out and treated her and she was transported to Celebration Hospital where she was unresponsive, Local 6 News learned. Orange County Sheriff's Office will be investigating.

[SummerinFL]

Poor girl I hope she will be okay.

[CinderellaCM2000]

Oh no- what next? It's been a busy year so far for this sort of thing. I hope she will be all right.

[Darkbeer]

More info from the Orlando Sentinel...

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-b...home-headlines

The teen, whose identity has yet to be released, was exiting the ride with her mother at 9:50 a.m. today when she complained she was feeling unwell. Disney employees approached the girl and called paramedics because she needed medical attention, Solomons said. Paramedics arrived at 9:57 a.m. to transport her to the hospital.

The teen lost consciousness and heart function, but medical personnel revived her, Solomons said. She is being evaluated for a prior medical condition, and the ride is being tested for malfunctions.

[olegc]

I am not surprised. I love the ride - but have to limit my use of it (mostly here in CA) since you don't really drop - you are pulled in both directions. So - the amount of force on your brain and such are much higher than would be normal. My brother asked me once whether I was having a heart attack after the ride - I was so pale. Was dizzy too.

But - that's me, and that's the thing with thrill style rides. Since not all humans are created exactly the same - some of us will have ill effects from riding these rides..

[Darkbeer]

http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.../APN/507120936

Leanne Deacon felt strange but told her mother she'd quickly recover after exiting Disney World-MGM Studios' "The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror," which depicts a haunted elevator ride, said Jim Solomons, an Orange County Sheriff's Office spokesman. However, Solomons said the girl's condition deteriorated so rapidly that her heart stopped beating and she had to be resuscitated by emergency workers. Solomons said he wasn't certain of the girl's condition, but she was being seen by a neurosurgeon at a nearby hospital to determine what caused her injuries. Solomons said no other passengers had complained of injuries, and "we're satisfied that everything seemed to function OK on the ride."

Walt Disney did not immediately comment on the injury and it could not be determined if the ride remained open Tuesday. On the Tower of Terror, which depicts a haunted hotel, riders are placed in an elevator, which shoots up 13 stories and then plummets back twice. Florida's major theme parks are not directly regulated by the state, and instead have their own inspectors.

[BellhopMicah]

I am devastated by this. I seriously hope the girl is ok

[Tink215]

My thoughts and prayers are with the young lady and her family for a speedy recovery!!!

[pisces]

I'm concerned for myself. I'm having heart trouble, that I didn't have last year. I'm going to have to read the precautions again....I don't remember if it said anything about people with heart conditions not riding.

I was thinking that I would have to give up Mali-boomer, because I can't take the shock, and pressure changes of being raised up that fast. I'll miss the view, though it doesn't last that long......I can get the same view on the Sunwheel, and much calmer ride.

Totally not thrilled about having to give up TOT , though. However, that ride was always more about the library, and queue, for me, than anything else. I wonder if they'd let me just sit in while the dressed up CM, makes their speech, and quickly exit once the door closes?

I think Big Thunder and Space Mountain will be fine, because those are just jerky movements, and not necessarily dramatic heights/pressure changes

[Andrew]

Totally not thrilled about having to give up TOT , though. However, that ride was always more about the library, and queue, for me, than anything else. I wonder if they'd let me just sit in while the dressed up CM, makes their speech, and quickly exit once the door closes?

The last chance to exit is just before you board the ride vehicle. At that point you can bypass the actual ride portion, proceed to the exit queue and wait for your party.

[DisneyMomof2]

that is so terrible. I pray she'll be ok

[Mark Goldhaber]

Latest word I have from a Studios CM is that the girl had an aneurism, and the ride may have jarred the clot so that it moved to a more dangerous location. Again, this is not confirmed by an official source. I do not have an update yet on the girl's condition.

[mzloolue]

This would have been an aneurism that had not been previously detected?

[BellhopMicah]

Latest word I have from a Studios CM is that the girl had an aneurism, and the ride may have jarred the clot so that it moved to a more dangerous location. Again, this is not confirmed by an official source. I do not have an update yet on the girl's condition.

That's the same thing a friend told me as well.

[Mark Goldhaber]

This would have been an aneurism that had not been previously detected?

I would assume so. To think that someone would go on a ride like ToT knowing that they have an aneurism just waiting to move to a dangerous position seems too outrageous to consider.

[efoxx]

you are pulled in both directions. So - the amount of force on your brain and such are much higher than would be normal.

not really much higher. about -.1 to -.2 g's on the descent, and about +2-2.5 g's on the change in direction. both are directed straight down. you get more g's and more violent g forces on RnRC and even SM. and on rides where you hang upsidedown (can't think of any at WDW, but lots of them at canrivals) you experience -1 g for extended periods.

if it's an aneurism one would certainly hope the family didn't know about it, otherwise it would be boardering on criminal to let her go. but then like all things this could have happened anywhere then, riding this type of thrill ride only increases the odds slightly, about enough for disney lawyers to put up signs.

another possible cause would be extremely low blood pressure which can be caused by a number of things.

[CinderellaCM2000]

Hey all- as an EMT I have to interject. There are so many different things that could have been wrong with her it is nearly infinite. Anneurisms are often not detectable or preventable in any way. I have seen people perfectly fine in Wal Mart and poof- they have an intense pain in their head and collapse. Anneurism. I also find it hard to believe that her heart would stop due to an anneurism. An aeortic seizure or could have done it, though. These things are rare and I believe that the doctors will find the cause in due time. I do not believe it was the ride's fault. I feel for the CMs when something like this happens as well as the patient. Just my opinion.

[olegc]

not really much higher. about -.1 to -.2 g's on the descent, and about +2-2.5 g's on the change in direction. both are directed straight down. you get more g's and more violent g forces on RnRC and even SM. and on rides where you hang upsidedown (can't think of any at WDW, but lots of them at canrivals) you experience -1 g for extended periods.

i should have clarified. I think the fact that it's not a natural drop - but a pull ack and forth on a VERY smooth motion - is the culprit in my opinion. I think for some it's too much to go so fast in one direction and then get pulled opposite - back and forth like that.

[BellhopMicah]

I feel for the CMs when something like this happens as well as the patient.

I know. I hope they are doing alright

[Mrs. Newseditor44]

Embolism : blockage in the artery caused by an embolus (free floating clot) that travels through the blood vessels.

Aneurysm: a bulge in a blood vessel which can rupture. Due to either inherited diseases such as Marfan Syndrome or build up of plaque on blood vessels.


From another thread, it looks like she had a heart attack. If so, then in her case its pretty rare at a young age. I would also assume that since she is still alive that she has a very high chance or survival as surgeons once they know the problem are able to treat it with with an angioplasty and heart medication. But then again, it all depends on how much damage there is to her heart.

I am sending out prayers to her and her family again.

[Matterhorn Fan]

I know. I hope they are doing alright

I'm sure they're fine.

[Tutter]

It's not sounding too good - Disney Ride Girl Still Critical

[pisces]

Aspirin, supposedly, prevents clots from happening where you don't want them. The problem is, it also prevents them when you DO want them.......allegedly.

I'll definitely be taking an aspirin, and I'll have my nitroglycerin tablets with me, when I ride TOT !!!

Age has nothing to do with heart attacks. You can be born with heart defects. You can have blocked arteries no matter what the age. It's not just cholesterol that blocks arteries. Several different kinds of bacteria, and toxins, other than plaque and cholesterol......can also block arteries. Some people are born with inadequate arteries.

All kinds of blockages can occur at any age.

It can happen, and many people don't even know they've got this problem. And, no warning.

Stuff happens.

Everybody pray.

[efoxx]

here's a thought to consider.

this kind of thing happens quit a bit. but unless it is a star high school athlete, or some child star it goes largely unoticed. that is to say until it happens in a high profile place like WDW. the media coverage is even more intensified when you have multiple incidents over the course of a year, like in this case.

now we will begin to here lots of screaming for more gov. intervention even though it will likely be shown that WDW is in no way responsible for these two events. we will here how dangerous the rides CAN be, and how nobody is watching these parks to see if they are safe. all the time forgeting that Disney and every major theme park owner has every reason to go beyond the minimum of the law. that is the need for positive public opinion. the only thing gov involovment will do is handicap inovations which could make things run safer and more efficient.

[Mrs. Newseditor44]

I'll definitely be taking an aspirin, and I'll have my nitroglycerin tablets with me, when I ride TOT !!!

Well I think its a good idea if you take your meds regardless of whatever ride you go on. Like you said, stuff happens and when you least expect it. My husband's heart condition is primarily hereditary although no one in his family warned him. We unfortunately learned the hard way...when he was in the hospital recovering from a heart attack at age 34. My best friend when she was in her early 20s was getting tired a lot to the point she was losing her breath just walking. She went to see a doctor and after many tests, she found out she had weak arteries leading directly to her heart. Both of them no longer can go on any roller coaster or certain extreme amusement/thrill rides even with their medication.

So everyone take care and get themselves checked out if there's any family history, shortness of breath, heartburn (it may not be heartburn) or leg cramps. I'm serious, I don't want to read about anyone else in the newspapers!

Take care.

Still praying for the girl and her family.