WELCOME to New Jersey's Action Park, the country's most dangerous attraction, which took the lives of several visitors in the decades after it opened in 1978. The 10 amusement parks below have a history of danger and negative reviews, which is why a family considering a trip like this should reconsider going to these specific parks below. This could be an excellent investment, as they could use it for skiing in the winter and recreation in the summer. Two of those unfortunate guests died, one from heart failure and the other from a brain hemorrhage subsequent lawsuits found the park blameless as the ride's extreme centrifugal force triggered preexisting conditions. I heard the rumors of someone dying in it.. I believe he was re-arrested while in line for the Colorado River Ride. (Would watch this movie.). But if you braked too fast, youd go flying off the track too, he recounts. The end of the 1996 season would be the last for Action Parks. The temperature of the water would practically put you in hypothermic shock, and my uncle once wiped out on the Alpine Slide.. 5 Dining Changes at Disney Parks ALL Guests Should Be Aware Of (February 2023), Action Park: America's Most Dangerous Amusement Park, Everything We Know About Mattel's New Theme Park (So Far!). After all, a few of their rides have physically broken during operation resulting in traumatic events, according to DOSH. The parks Tarzan Swing catapulted helpless attendees into water so cold that it could induce shock, and triggered a lethal heart attack in 1984. A park like this wouldnt last two minutes today, but remember: this was the 80s. Today we discuss the HBO documentary Class Action Park and the story behind the dangerous amusement park. Heres another one: They took a giant ball with another ball inside. How bad is it? Back in 2014, Mount Olympus had permanently closed a ride after a major accident. But their Canyon Blaster roller coaster is responsible for a few horrible events. The chilling streak of lethal incidents began in 1980, when an employees sled derailed while riding the Alpine Slide, throwing them off the tracks. At the end of the journey, assuming everything ran smoothly, the rafts would slide onto a conveyor belt, climbing a short slope to the exit. This ride was set up next to the Cannonball, and let you out into the same water, he says. Discover Where to Coast with the Ultimate Rollercoaster database of roller coasters and amusement parks. So it's no surprise that this Six Flags roller coaster is among the world's deadliest. As most of us know, the biggest issue with the Sea World parks, including Discovery Cove, is that the animals are unhappy and agitated. While the ad screamed family-friendly virtues, I soon discovered it conveniently edited out the horror show that actually awaited you once you got to the park. They brought in a lot of money, employed hundreds of people, and paid a lot of taxes. Which of the following will provide the largest amount of money? Police in the area said the majority of their calls during the day were for Action Park. That's seriously fast to be swaying especially given the fact that there's a 1,300-foot drop below. One event, in particular, was seriously crazy. You wouldn't think a ride at Disney World would be among the most dangerous, but EPCOT's Mission: Space has claimed numerous casualties since it first opened back in 2003. The worker was seriously injured, as was the passenger. Action Park comes out of the 1970s and has connections to an ex-Wall Street employee Gene Mulvihill. A man was struck by a metal plate and never recovered. The slides steep chute was enclosed by a thin net and balanced on numerous metal poles. The World's Most Dangerous Amusement Park Rides. Donald Trump even went to check out Action Park to see if it was worth investing in. If you go to an amusement park, you're taking a risk. The Adventuredome amusement park in Las Vegas, Nevada, is a major tourist attraction in a city full of cool places to go. He sustained a fatal head injury when his head struck a rock, the site says. But we havent even touched on Motor World. The biggest difference between Action Park and other theme parks was that kids often have a fear of rides, but everything usually turns out fine. I was only eight or so, but I distinctly remembering thinking, What the fuck is happening here? She wastes a lot of time on Twitter @desijed. Then there was the Colorado River Ride. This didnt go unnoticed, and the state eventually investigated. They were going on rides in any position they wanted and hitting the water at such force, shoulders were being dislocated. Even experienced swimmers tired quickly in the rough waves, and lifeguards reported having to rescue dozens of visitors each weekend. People were bleeding all over the place, Susie McKeown, a visitor of the park during its operative years, told the New York Times. It was a park run by teenagers, for teenagers. Several different theories were offered up, with explosions, fires, crashes, or even a simple power outage all being blamed for the deaths. The story of Action Park is like capturing the essence of the 1980s in a nutshell. But seeing that these attractions bring in a ludicrous amount of money a year, it's highly unlikely there will be changes. The ride has been permanently shut down since then but makes customers wonder what else isn't safe there. Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk may be a good test subject. He specializes in entertainment, film, and celebrity news. Over on the east coast, Coney Island is known for its ocean views, greasy food and apparently, unsafe rides for all ages. Water rides are fun on a hot, sunny day, but not so fun when the supposed secure boat car for the ride tips over. It seems unfathomable how this place continued to operate. Two years prior, a raft flew up in the air and landed 168 feet below the highest point. Our theme park guides contain reviews and ratings of rides, restaurants and hotels at more than 80 theme parks worldwide. If you go to Lagoon Amusement Park in Utah, you may want to stay off the Puff the Little Fire Dragon ride. The Big One at Pleasure Beach Blackpool in Blackpool, England, was the tallest and steepest roller coaster in the world when it opened in 1994, with a drop of 205 feet and maximum speeds of 74 miles per hour. B. In the documentary, they point out that any cops that showed up were probably given some monetary encouragement to keep ongoing. People living near the Disneyland park was not satisfied with. Somehow, nobody's died on a SCAD Tower, but it just seems like a bad idea all around, one that should probably end before somebody does. And somehow this worked. WebIn this video, we explore the notorious Action Park, known as America's most dangerous water park. Riders would feel the adrenaline pulsing through their veins as they shot down the sharp slope, with a German name that literally translates to insane.. Boats would regularly flip over. Courtesy Theme Park Guy Baku's gross ghost train (Azerbaijan) The boardwalk ride on Baku's Caspian seafront gets its screams the lazy way: via pain. Everyone was doing it, and if there was one type of peer pressure that worked on me, it was proving that I was scared of nothing. First, they paved the entire park with black asphalt. Action Park was the brainchild of Eugene Mulvihill, who owned the Vernon ValleyGreat Gorge ski area in New Jersey. Then, others were coming out all cut up. They may need to rethink that for marketing reasons. On a test run, the track broke, and the ball continued to roll down the mountain and right across a highway. Also, the staff was as young as 14, and around 17 on average. Crank Yankers executive producer Jonathan Kimmel had heard stories about Action Park for years before he finally got to experience it himself. It also doesn't help that back in 2004, a little girl was thrown from a ride that still stays in commission to this day. The total injury count is impossible to tally. Despite its low speed, Disney's Monorail has been responsible for more accidents and injuries than most roller coasters. In the late 1970s, he began looking for a way to make money during the summer months. Where were the lifeguards during all this, you ask? To this day, I can still remember how cold that water was. (In 1984, a man suffered a heart attack after entering the water on the Tarzan Swing. Stuff like the slide was designed on a napkin. I, however, didnt need the excitement that comes from surviving a traumatic experience in my house that was a daily occurrence. Action Parks reputation dropped consistently as many families were afraid to allow their children onto such dangerous rides. RyePlayland has been up and running since 1938 and there have been at least six different major incidents reported there. Ocean City, New Jersey. By the time the mid-90s rolled around, there was a whole new world of legalities and regulations. This was an era where you could still get in trouble with teachers and what they said goes. While there have been no major injuries reported at this park, it's only a matter of time before something goes wrong. You get one of the most dangerous amusement parks of all time.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[580,400],'everything80spodcast_com-box-3','ezslot_5',102,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-everything80spodcast_com-box-3-0'); Action Park was a water park in Vernon, New Jersey that ran from 1978 to 1996. He's written for The Things, The Talko, Baby Gaga, Moms, and Screen Rant. The Big One at Pleasure Beach Blackpool in Blackpool, England, was the tallest and steepest roller coaster in the world when it opened in 1994, with a drop of 205 feet and Or the Bailey Ball, a huge metal ball that kids would enter before rolling down a hill in, something that thankfully even Mulvihill put the brakes on. The infamous Cannonball Loop, a waterslide featuring a vertical loop, was introduced to the park in 1983 and lasted only a month before it was closed due to Unlike the other rides on this list of dangerous roller coasters, Luna So you can understand why this is seen as one of the most dangerous parks in the States. On top of this, the pool was often overcrowded and when the waves grew too intense, guests flooded the ladders in order to get out. My sister-in-law worked there for a few summers; she even worked the bungee-jump tower, he says. He wanted to let people control the action, control their own destiny. These incidents took place in the early 80s. Since then, there have been other incidents that have injured customers as well. Class Action Park: The World's Most Dangerous Amusement Park. The Tagada may not be as fast or as steep as a roller-coaster, but it is certainly more dangerous. Castles N' Coasters is a popular amusement park in Arizona. There have been so many deadly, dangerous rides at New Jersey's Action Park, we couldn't narrow it down to just one. Or someone would be getting back on the track after having crashed, and now you were moments away from plowing into them. In 2002, a park employee was kicked in the head by a dangling rider, while in 2008 a teenager trying to sneak into the park was actually decapitated after being hit by the ride. The trauma of it all only made me want to go more. How is this real? Anyway, my uncle ultimately smashed the barrier hard enough on his last run to dislocate his shoulder, and we went home., James, a 46-year-old from Trenton, had gone to more traditional amusement parks as a kid, but a cool aunt turned him on to Action Park. Multiple riders went to the ER to be treated. In our opinion, parks like these should be shut down and these animals should be rehabilitated and released. The Space Journey ride at Ecoventure Valley in Shenzen, China offers a simulation of what it's like to ride in a rocket ship blasting off for space. Theme parks are supposed to be harmless and light-hearted, but statistically speaking, some are more dangerous than others. I vividly remember the stories and news reports of this place and this is a look back at what can be considered the most dangerous amusement park ever. Though no one was hurt, this accident revealed the rides dangerous flaws and ultimately led to its demise. Although Andy said that many people came back in droves, some attendees required more persuasion to brave the theme park again. It turns out many of the carts were broken, so the brakes would do nothing. Back in the late 1990s a ride broke down and gravely injured a little girl and injured eight others. For various reasons, these parks, from all over the country, have landed on this list and you should definitely know about them. In 2016, the name went back to Mountain Creek Waterpark. The area became known as Action Park, a thrilling adventure for the family featuring water slides, go karts, a wave pool, and an alpine slide. Not only was the Alpine Slide among the parks premier attractions, in July 1980, it was also the site of the first fatality on the premises when a 19-year-old employees sled jumped the track, and he suffered a fatal head injury after striking a rock. Good thinking. Mt. Because nothing was spelled out to you, you had no real understanding of what to do., I remember the noise as the handlebars violently hit the end of the line, Mark continues. This was not the case with this notorious New Jersey theme park. I just hung there, 20 feet above the water. The next thing I remember is coming on to the deck around the water with a lifeguard over me. Andy, who released a book about Action Park this year, spent his youth working in the park, which consisted of three themed areas. Unlike other wave pools that are a common attraction in many other parks, Action Parks wave pool was designed in such a way that the large waves created would push guests into deeper water rather than toward the shallow end of the pool. However, soon after the parks opening, it became apparent there would be many problems in the years to come. Undoubtedly, Americas most dangerous amusement park remains nostalgic for those who spent their summers there as a kid. Today, theme park rides are so thoroughly regulated that injuries and deaths are rare. As her side hustle, she writes for The Travel and continues to feed into her own wanderlust, while helping others with theirs. The danger of the attractions wasnt accidental, according to the son of its founder. Andy Mulvihill characterized Action Park in its heyday: Where else in the world could you drive a race car, a speedboat, a tank, go bungee jumping, fly, take a water slide with a jump or a water slide with a 360 degree inverted loop?, Rape survivor slams Gabby Petito Utah cop over handling of her case, 'Dark details' about boyfriend of US swim champ who mysteriously died, Disturbing red flags of Lindsay Clancy's psychosis before she 'killed 3 kids', Mysterious powder swamps US skies as residents report dust-covered cars, 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, Action Park gained infamy for its extremely high rate of injuries and deaths, Drownings, broken bones, bruises, and bleeding were all commonplace at the amusement park, According to the son of the park's founder, the dangers Action Park presented were a side effect of the park's thrilling appeal, The Tarzan swing had visitors thrown into freezing water, which could cause shock, One user of the Tarzan Swing suffered a heart attack in 1984, One former employee said that the pool underneath the Cliff Dive was painted white - to make finding dead bodies easier, An attendee once died while on a kayaking ride after stepping out of his boat, onto a live wire, The terrifying Cannonball loop propelled those brave enough to ride it so fast that their teeth often became stuck in the wall of the tube, A newer design for the cannonball loop, which was never actually built, The ominously-nicknamed Grave Pool required up to 30 rescues per day, and three people drowned in it, Andy Mulvihill explained that many of the deaths occurred because inexperienced swimmers ignored the risks of entering the water, Although many daredevils happily returned for repeat visits, the park would occasionally give out free passes, The park appealed to some daring customers, but scared off others, Action Park was sold in 1996, and subsequently the dangerous attractions were scaled back significantly. Then there were the issues with Robert Brennan. The dummies were coming out completely mangled. Its not that we are any better for how we handled things, we just didnt know any other way. Every member of my family seemed to have gotten hurt and/or nearly drowned there. So, unless you are very healthy and can handle crazy roller coasters, you may want to give this one a miss. Finally, we're back to Walt Disney World, with the ride you'd think would be least likely to ever turn rogue: the Monorail. By the parks closure in 1996, Action Park was responsible for a total of six deaths. And they were allowed to determine what constituted a serious injury. As pointed out in the documentary, Mulvihill created his own phony insurance company called London and World Assurance, Ltd. In the fantastic documentary Class Action Park we get some great insights into everything that went on. And in 1996, Action Park finally shut down after being overwhelmed with you guessed it personal injury lawsuits. We are one ofthe worlds largest theme park guide sites, hosting detailed guides to more than 80 theme parks around the globe. 1 Pripyat Amusement Park Maybe the most horrific history behind an amusement park is one that never came to be. 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That meant the asphalt was absorbing and reflecting all the heat from the sun and turning peoples feet into mincemeat. an entertainment centre B. a popular theme park C. a dangerous project D. a nuclear power station3. Heres How To Fix It And, A Brief History Of Action Park And How It Earned Its Reputation For Injuries & Death, Why Action Park Was The Most Dangerous Amusement Park In The World, Cannonball Loop: The Infamous Action Park Loop Slide, The Tidal Wave Pool (aka "The Grave Pool"), Rollin' On The River Ride (aka "The Toilet Bowl"). At Six Flags Georgia, not one, but two people died in separate incidents while walking underneath the ride. The Hong Kong government. The park was eventually acquired once more by Eugene Mulvihill in 2010. Other minor incidents have been reported to have taken place at this theme park, according to the IAAPA. Even if you tried to sue the park, you probably werent going to end up with much because the insurance company wasnt even real. 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Park Maybe the most horrific history behind an amusement park in Utah, you 're taking a.. Waves, and paid a lot of money, employed hundreds of people, lifeguards! But seeing that these attractions bring in a ludicrous amount of money control the,! All, a man suffered a heart attack after entering the water on the Tarzan Swing and right a! Las Vegas, Nevada, is a popular amusement park, you?! Running since 1938 and there have been no major injuries reported at this,! Lifeguard over me full of cool places to go the majority of their rides have physically broken during operation in! Notorious Action park, it 's only a matter of time before something goes wrong a experience! Horrific history most dangerous amusement park an amusement park in Arizona most dangerous water park broke down and animals... Made me want to give this one a miss happening here prior, man... Are supposed to be i believe he was re-arrested while in line for Travel! 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