At least thirty people They were left hanging upside down for approximately half an hour atop a popular amusement park attraction Oaks Park in Portland, Oregonas reported by the state rescue and emergency team through the social network X.
The attraction AtmosFEAR, which operates like a pendulum and turns passengers until they are completely upside down, suffered an unexpected failure.
Chris Ryan, a park visitor, and his wife, who were at the park to celebrate a birthday, had planned to ride the attraction. However, upon arriving, they saw that the AtmosFEAR It had stopped in mid-air and they heard other visitors exclaim that the passengers were hanging upside down. Given this situation, they decided not to go up and watched the incident unfold from a distance.
Later, they boarded the Ferris wheel and while enjoying the ride, they heard a loudspeaker announcement informing them of the park’s closure and asking all visitors to evacuate the facilities.
The situation was resolved thanks to the joint intervention of firefighters and engineers of the park, who worked to manually lower the damaged structure. Although they prepared for a rope rescue, this measure was not necessary.
All passengers were evacuated without injury and received preventive medical care.
For the moment, the attraction will remain closed until further notice.
The park announced that it will collaborate with the attraction’s manufacturer and state inspectors to investigate the causes that led to the ride’s cessation of operations.
“We would like to express our deepest gratitude to the first responders and our staff for taking quick action, which led to a positive outcome today, and to the rest of the park visitors who quickly followed instructions to vacate the park to make way for first responders. To address the situation, above all, we are grateful that passengers are safe and with their families,” Oaks Park said in a news release.
Park representatives have assured that those visitors whose experience was affected by this incident will be able to choose to receive a full refund or reschedule their visit for another date.
He AtmosFEAR It is a pendulum-type attraction that is characterized by its structure in the shape of a giant swing which swings passengers in wide arcs while simultaneously rotating on its axis.
The attraction consists of a large structure in which participants are secured in a row of seats arranged in a circle. Once the cycle begins, the pendulum begins to swing gently, gradually increasing in height and speed.
Upon reaching its maximum point, the pendulum swings at an angle that exceeds the 120 degreestaking passengers to considerable heights and providing spectacular views of the park and its surroundings.
As the pendulum swings, the circular structure in which the seats are located also rotates, adding an extra dimension of movement. This combination of roll and rotation causes a sensation of weightlessness at the ends of each swing, as well as variable G-forces that intensify the experience.
(With information from The Associated Press)
