14 DAY TRIAL // A ride at the Universal Studios amusement park has malfunctioned yesterday, leaving 12 people stuck.
The Rip Ride malfunctioned and the safety mode switch came into effect. A dozen guests were trapped 150 feet from the ground for two hours, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
The Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit was blocked at about 7 p.m., and the people aboard were left dangling in the air in a vertical position.
They had reached the first hill of the track coaster before the ride became still. The passengers were freed at around 9.30pm. One of them has complained about neck injuries and has been transported to a local hospital.
Jeff Day, district chief at the Orlando Fire Department, describes that a technical malfunction has taken place. An investigation into the cause of the mechanical glitch is underway.
“We're not going to reopen the ride until we know what happened and we're sure it won't happen again,” Universal Orlando spokesman Tom Schroder explains.
“The safety system did exactly what it's supposed to do. [...] We spent a lot of that time talking to them (the passengers) and trying to make them as comfortable as we could,” he adds.
According to Daily Mail, Orlando Fire Rescue crews helped with the rescue, maneuvering the cart to a horizontal position and helping passengers reach an elevator and descend. The Rip Ride is Orlando's tallest roller coaster, towering at a height of 17 stories.
“The kids in our family were next to go on. Looking back, thankfully, they were not on board any of the carriages and were safely standing at the starting line,” witness Scott Brough recalls.
“Hopefully it's back working safely soon, as the kids went on it five times and thought it was a great ride,” he notes.