4 year old died on Mission Space today?

[Bandman3X]

Obviously the height restriction on rides is more intended for the mechanics of the ride rather then a means to limit ages. That said, I have no idea if a 44 in tall 5 yr old would be safer then a 44 in 4 yr old. But what I really have to wonder is how many parents would let their 4 yr old on a ride with a 5 yr old limit IF he met the height requirements ? How many parents game Disney - as well as other business' - by saying 4 yr old Jonnie is 3 yrs old in order to get a cheaper ticket or a free meal ? Would those same parents lie to the CM just so the family could ride M:S together ? Maybe not, but we all know how selfish human nature can be.

 

[mitros]

A little boys tragic death has turned into a heated argument among rocket scientist wannabees over the problems one might encounter on a 1-2-3-4-??? G force theme park ride. A little boy has died, and my only question would be how the ride was allowed to open so quickly after a death.

 

[Merandab4]

This story really hit home for me as I too am From PA (like the 4 year old boy)

What an awful thing to have happened at what is suppose to be the happiest place on Earth. WDW should be a place to "Celebrate Life". Now the only memories this family will have of WDW is death. How Sad. Prayers go out to this family, (and the family of the Kentucky boy who had drown). I wonder if these families were apart of our DIS family?

 

[Golter]

A little boys tragic death has turned into a heated argument among rocket scientist wannabees over the problems one might encounter on a 1-2-3-4-??? G force theme park ride. A little boy has died, and my only question would be how the ride was allowed to open so quickly after a death.

This the only way I know how to answer your question as to why the ride was reopend. Disney invested $100 Million in to M:S and spared no expense insuring the ride was safe, and when they were done they went 10 times further to further insure its safety. I think its ridiculous to suggest that somehow Disney was negligent or in some ways cut corners. This was a freak accident, one death in 8 million riders. There have been 10's of thousands of boys, that meet his physical requirements, ride M:S and not one of them has died or even needed to be transported to a hospital. It was a freak accident and you will see that a preexisting condition was the cause or that nothing will be found. What you wont find is a report saying that the G forces were too strong for him and that is what killed him.

This is a sad event and I could not imagine losing a child anywhere, let alone a place that our entire family adores. God's comfort is all that I pray for.

 

[rocketriter]

I'm one of the posters who said they wouldn't take a 4-year-old on the ride. However, I was not talking about health considerations, nor was I finding fault with the parents. I was speaking only in terms of my own children. Although they are different people and one is braver than the other, at 4 they both would have found the ride too intense and would have been emotionally overwhelmed. Now that's only my children. Other kids have different tolerance for ride intensity. The parents of this child may have made an entirely appropriate decision, then been blind-sided by a pre-existing medical condition that nobody knew about.

 

[Beachangel]

Personally, I believe this poor little child must have had some pre-existing condition. The whole thing is tragic.


From today's NY Post:

June 15, 2005 -- The 4-year old son of a United Nations finance officer died on a chilling Walt Disney World ride that simulates a rocket launch and has a history of sending thrill-seekers to the hospital.
Daudi Bamuwamye, who was with his mother and 8-year-old sister at Epcot Center, seemed OK when he boarded the "Mission: Space" ride on Monday.

But as the ride continued, "he grew rigid and his legs were extended," according to police.

His mother, Agnes, thought the youngster was scared because of the gravity-defying ef- fects, so she clutched his hand.

But when the ride ended, he had stopped breathing.

His panicked mother ran off the ride holding her lifeless son and Epcot employees frantically attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but to no avail. He was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

During an eight-month period in 2003-04, six people over age 55 were taken to hospitals for chest pain and nausea after riding "Mission: Space." No one had any serious problems.

At that time, it was the most hospital visits for a single ride since Florida's major theme parks agreed in 2001 to report such problems to the state.

Motion sickness is common, and barf bags are stowed in each compartment on the ride.

The ride was closed after the tragedy but reopened yesterday morning, said a Disney spokeswoman.

The boy's heartbroken mother said, "We would like to thank all those in the Orlando area, as well as those back home for their outpouring of concern, prayer and support."

She said the family, which has homes in Secaucus, N.J., and Bucks County, Pa., was struggling "with this heartbreaking and devastating loss."

His father, Moses Bamuwamye, works in Manhattan on the International Advisory and Monitoring Board for Iraq dealing with economic issues.

He was not on vacation with his wife and kids, according to U.N. co-worker Teklay Afeworki.

"He's a very nice gentleman," said Afeworki of the Ugandan native. "He's definitely devoted to his family."

Afeworki had met the dead boy once.

"It's very difficult for me to talk about," he said.

Officials said the boy met the 44-inch height requirement for the ride and his mother said he had no history of medical problems.

Sheri Blanton, a spokeswoman at the medical examiner's office in Florida, said trauma did not cause the death, but more tests are needed to figure out exactly what did.

The $100 million ride, Disney's most technologically advanced attraction, is a simulator that uses spinning centrifugal force to create the sensation of a rocket launch.

Additional reporting by Heidi Singer


http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/48426.htm

 

[ckckc2000]

A little boys tragic death has turned into a heated argument among rocket scientist wannabees over the problems one might encounter on a 1-2-3-4-??? G force theme park ride. A little boy has died, and my only question would be how the ride was allowed to open so quickly after a death.

My thoughts exactly!!!! My thoughts and prayers go out to the family-I can't believe the ride reopened like nothing happened-for the respect of the family they should of closed it for quite a while-very sad

 

[crusader]

The parents of this child may have made an entirely appropriate decision

I wholeheartedly agree. She did absolutely nothing wrong.

Children who meet the height requirements for thrill rides aren't at higher risk for injury because of their age, said Charles Paidis, a University of South Florida pediatric surgeon and specialist in pediatric trauma cases at Tampa General Hospital."

This is a general stat. They're not at a higher risk because of their age as compared to what - all the riders and all the demographics vs injuries sustained and reasons criteria?

You'll never get a consensus on what this situation is dealing with, because it is specific to g-force and the impact on the system. The medical community will no doubt follow the line of reasoning that height is one legitimate factor utilized to measure internal development. Unfortunately, they all know there's this little variable known as an individual - complete with a unique genetic makeup for whom no two are alike.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

A little boys tragic death has turned into a heated argument among rocket scientist wannabees over the problems one might encounter on a 1-2-3-4-??? G force theme park ride. A little boy has died, and my only question would be how the ride was allowed to open so quickly after a death.

You lost me on this one. Where is the heated arguement?

MG

 

[jazstar87]

I have a question.... Why dose the media pick on disney??? Not once i heard anything about other theme parks about people dying. I know someone who work at a theme park, not disney, but they said about thirty people died at that park. Not once i heard anything about it, and it is in my state! But come on, not to be mean or anything, it like when somebody dies at disney all stations, maybe execpt abc, have about 10 min thing about it.

 

[Luv2Roam]

A little more from the Orlando paper:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/busi...jun15,0,6756116.story?coll=orl-home-headlines
In part (page two of article):

"If the ride contributed to Daudi's death, doctors said the trouble could be with the lungs, heart or brain.

Dr. John Kuluz, an associate professor and expert in pediatric critical care and brain injuries at the University of Miami, said the mother's report of her son's rigidity suggests that the brain was a more likely suspect.

"That episode of being rigid makes it sound as if the brain was having increased pressure," said Kuluz, who does research in children's brain injuries.

He said different things could cause the stiffening, including a hemorrhage or bleeding in the brain that might be triggered by high G-forces and spinning. But, he added, it's unlikely that a healthy child suddenly would be stricken.

Pediatric cardiologists said various abnormalities can trigger sudden death. However, they said, serious problems usually make themselves known before age 4.

Overall, doctors said children's bodies are better able to deal with the physical stresses on intense amusement-park rides. They said they couldn't give blanket recommendations to parents.

"If anything, a kid can tolerate [rides] better than an adult," said Dr. Tom Carson, a Florida Hospital pediatric cardiologist. "But I guess the best advice is that if there is any family history of sudden death or fainting, those kids should be evaluated by a physician before going on a ride like that."

 

[johare]

I have a question.... Why dose the media pick on disney??? Not once i heard anything about other theme parks about people dying. I know someone who work at a theme park, not disney, but they said about thirty people died at that park. Not once i heard anything about it, and it is in my state! But come on, not to be mean or anything, it like when somebody dies at disney all stations, maybe execpt abc, have about 10 min thing about it.

Come on, apply a little common sense to your question and you'll have your own answer.

 

[raidermatt]

1- The big guy is always the target.

2- It does depend somewhat on how the death occurs. There was apparently a recent suicide at the CR, and there's also the lady who passed on or after riding PotC. Neither recieved anywhere near the coverage this is getting.

There's also an element of the unknown here. With the BTMRR accident at DL, we knew what caused the death. There had to be an investigation into HOW the event came about, but it was no secret how the person died. Mystery always catches the public's attention.

The ride is also fairly new, with a reputation for causing less severe issues, adding to the doubt.

3- This does involve a 4 year old child, which is also going to garner more attention.

 

[raidermatt]

I think its ridiculous to suggest that somehow Disney was negligent or in some ways cut corners. This was a freak accident, one death in 8 million riders.

Yes, it is ridiculous to suggest they were definitely negligent.

Its also ridiculous to definitively suggest they weren't.

Until we know more, hanging out at either end of that spectrum is myopic.

Further, IF (big IF) the ride results in one death every 8 million riders, that's not going to be acceptable to the public at large or to Disney themselves. That's about 2 deaths every 3 years caused by ONE attraction (if it was indeed somehow caused by the attraction).

No, this ride doesn't have enough of a track record to write this off as a once in a decade event.

That doesn't mean Disney is guilty of any wrongdoing, legally or morally. After all, the death might have had nothing to do with the ride.

But there's not enough evidence to say that serious questions shouldn't be asked right now.

A little boy has died, and my only question would be how the ride was allowed to open so quickly after a death.

Personally, I would have liked to have seen them wait a day, partially out of respect, and partially to avoid the "heartless corporation" charges.

But, I can see why they didn't wait. If they kept it closed, certainly rumors would fly that they found a problem. It would bring into question among even more people whether the tolerances within which they operate the ride are acceptable.

I understand, but I would have liked to have seen it closed another day. Of course, then there would always be those who'd say one day isn't enough, and they should wait until there is a definitive cause of death. Which is actually a pretty reasonable position, but I'm sure Disney would fear the way the public would view that as a lack of confidence in the ride's safety.

 

[mitros]

Pages 4, 5 and 6 seem argumentative to me. You may see it differentley.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Pages 4, 5 and 6 seem argumentative to me. You may see it differentley.

Okay. I certainly didn't mean it to come across as a "heated arguement". I was only trying to throw in my 2 cents.

We all realize that the most important thing here is the loss of the boy.
I also feel that discussing how and why (albeit speculation) is very important.

Again, anything is possible, but M:S just doesn't seem to be a lethal ride to me.

MG

 

[mitros]

I'd agree that MS is not a lethal ride. My sister and her husband rode, and although she was a bit queezy, and said she would not do it again, there have been thousands of riders unaffected in any way.

 

[YoHo]

Is Big thunder Mountain a Lethal ride?
It certainly was for one poor shlep.

Anecdotal evidence is meaningless in this case.

A 4 year old boy has died and the Autopsy reveals nothing conclusive. That's all we know. We don't know that it "wasn't the rides fault" What we do know is that the manufacturer mentioned concerns over not being included in the testing and that this ride has produced more "sick" people then Disney expected and more then pretty much any other attraction.


These are the salient points against Disney.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Is Big thunder Mountain a Lethal ride?
It certainly was for one poor shlep.

Yes, but Big Thunder Mountain was lethal because it didn't perform as it was intended.

MG

 

[Walt's Frozen Head]

thanks for finding the entire quote as it further contradicts this statement of yours

You are wrong, it does not contradict any statement I made.

Disney told the world, when ETC unsubstantiatedly claimed that M:S might be unsafe, that it was not safe, that it passed "Disney's" safety testing. Not ETC's safety testing, not any recognized authority's safety testing, Disney's own safety testing.

If the ride is unsafe, Disney and Disney alone is the reason it's unsafe.