New Info about Splash Mountain foot stuck incident

[Tiggernut_jadie]

I went back to work part time for a national photographer. It is company policy not to admit guilt or place blame but to make sure the proper medical attention is sought and the bills directed to corporate. The client doesn't have to pay out of pocket for injuries sustained no matter who is at fault. Even if it were negligence on the parents part (say if a child was injured). If it happens in our studio we pay med expenses. Also it is company policy that the manager or the photographer calls and follows up on the injured at least once (more is encouraged). None of this admits guilt but is just the right thing to do. Disney should pay the bills get them appropriate accomodations to help the child enjoy the rest of the trip and check up on the family. It is the "right" thing to do whether it is a design flaw or a teen acting foolishly.

You ARE joking right? So you're basically saying that if a teenager is acting foolishly and gets hurt then it's up to Disney to pay for the families room etc. Remeind me to take my neice with me next time - she's 15 and perhps she'd like to swing off the side of Dumbo so we can get a better vacation out of it!!!!!!!

 

[lillygator]

I have to agree with Tiggernut...a teen acting foolishly? Seriously?

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

You ARE joking right? So you're basically saying that if a teenager is acting foolishly and gets hurt then it's up to Disney to pay for the families room etc. Remeind me to take my neice with me next time - she's 15 and perhps she'd like to swing off the side of Dumbo so we can get a better vacation out of it!!!!!!!

NEVER said that!!!!! I think they should have provided transportation to and from the Mk and hospital the night of, paid the medical bills then arrange for a way that the family could still enjoy the vacation while trying to make sure the daughter is comfortable. Where did I say they should have a free vacation? If it is disney's fault the child got hurt then i do believe that they should get compensated appropriately.

Make sure your neice's parents see this remark. I don't think that joke is even funny. A child WAS hurt no matter whose fault and snide comments about a free vacation is not funny IMO.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

I have to agree with Tiggernut...a teen acting foolishly? Seriously?

You know that is completely unconfirmed. Plus if there is a chance a child can get hurt on a ride from lack of better judgement then the ride should not allow children to ride without a guardian or raise the height requirement. I personally think there should be seat belts on that ride.

 

[Chuck S]

Plus if there is a chance a child can get hurt on a ride from lack of better judgement then the ride should not allow children to ride without a guardian or raise the height requirement. I personally think there should be seat belts on that ride.

You know, there is a chance someone, child or adult, could be hurt on any ride in the park from lack of better judgement. They could be hurt walking around and bumping into something. You see kids, with their parents next to them, sitting or standing on the lean rails in circlevision movies. They could be hurt. Maybe they should close them, they are so dangerous.

 

[Tiggernut_jadie]

NEVER said that!!!!! I think they should have provided transportation to and from the Mk and hospital the night of, paid the medical bills then arrange for a way that the family could still enjoy the vacation while trying to make sure the daughter is comfortable. Where did I say they should have a free vacation? If it is disney's fault the child got hurt then i do believe that they should get compensated appropriately.

Make sure your neice's parents see this remark. I don't think that joke is even funny. A child WAS hurt no matter whose fault and snide comments about a free vacation is not funny IMO.

Umm I think you DID say that - whether it's what you meant only you can know but you did say it......

Disney should pay the bills get them appropriate accomodations to help the child enjoy the rest of the trip and check up on the family. It is the "right" thing to do whether it is a design flaw or a teen acting foolishly.

And I'm sure my sister would agree with me 100% - like me she is a born sceptic!!!!!!

 

[MosMom]

Why should there be seatbelts? Why can't people just follow the rules? Sit your butt in the seat and keep your feet on the floor. Keep your arms and head in the ride vehicle. Really not that hard to understand. I'd rather not have to be strapped in because there are idiots out there that don't follow the rules.

 

[minnie61650]

You know that is completely unconfirmed. Plus if there is a chance a child can get hurt on a ride from lack of better judgement then the ride should not allow children to ride without a guardian or raise the height requirement. .......

You have got to be kidding!
The girl who got injured was 14 years old and she is 5 feet 10 inches tall.
If Disney raises the height limit because someone who is 5'10' got injured then most of us would not be able to ride Splash Mountain!

This is the a quote from page 20 post #299 of this thread:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=12530467#post12530467

Update!!


ok, i am back on here.

i have read through most of the posts.

I really cant believe some of them. I say what happened and what is happening, and some say it was me now being sue happy or i didnt get the truth.

All I know is we were at the parks. We left. My 2 DS have been to WDW about 6 times now and know the layout. My DStepD had her first trip ever. She wanted to stay with them. They went on SM, and from what ive been told be others now, apparently if you sit in the very front only, there is a space up there and somehow her foot got lodge up in it between a bar when she braced herself for the smaller drops. She managed to get it mostly freed, but on the major drop, it wedged again. Disney acknowledged the bar is there and she did nothing wrong when she got hurt. they apparently know about the bar because they knew all about taking the front of the log apart right there when it happened.

We were called, and Disney would not even send a car for us. They wanted us to spend an hour on the bus and walking in to find them. Finally i called the BWV front desk who put me to security who i heard them talk on the walkie talkies to MK about it and they took us right there the back way in.

When greeted, again, told she did nothing wrong. They said the medical was our responsibility, which is fine, i have insurance from work, so thats not even an issue.

Disney stated to call a number they gave my wife for a ride back to the resort when done and not to worry about the bill. The driver tried to charge my wife for the ride. It was not free. My wife didnt have her purse on her because we left in a hurry back to MK. She said to bill the room or take the $2 she had on her.

the hospital was rude and didnt even teach her how to walk on crutches or wheel her out in the wheelchair to car, they just left her. They wouldnt let me wife call me either when leaving. They gave a Rx for pain, and wouldnt give her one for the road until my wife complained about getting one since she couldnt get to a pharmacy at 4am with no car.

They got in at 4 am. We tried calling anyone for info on what to do and was told they would do NOTHING. I only brought up the lawyer thing because it was suggested and i was weighing the options. I did not call a lawyer as of yet. it is an option,and that might have to be excercised if we get no help from this.

she got hurt on a ride, thats the point. They did nothing to help us as of yet except take us there only after i had to call around.

they did finally later today get her Rx filled for us, and we paid the bill for that. I tried calling the MK offices, and was told they were not in, and the secretary only relayed that message to the BWV switchboard to me. Wouldnt even talk to me. Just said to go through claims office or email them at the general email address everyone has.

We tried going to epcot about 2 pm today. It was not fun. she was in pain. and it was not easy.

They came back to room about 430 pm. At 615, someone from claims finally called us at the room and wanted to find out exactly what happened and get statements from my DD and DW about the incident.

She said she has to talk to a couple of people either tomorrow or weds now and will get back to us. Seems like they want to settle it fast, but no idication of how yet. She wanted us to fax the discharge paperwork to her and also my wifes divorce papers since she has full custody. that is in Phoenix though. It seems if they want to settle, i do know that both parents must release claim. But since she has full custody, they want proof. She said they may see if they can go around that before we leave. We may be able to have DW dad fax it in tomorrow for us since hes at our house while we are away.

We went out to dinner tonight at cape may and then watched Illuminations.

I have not been sitting in front of this able to replay obviously since we are trying to contact everyone about it on getting help and trying to salvage the trip which cost us a fortune as you all know.

No, we are not looking to sue, just want something done about it. It is DD first trip here and now she cant enjoy it, and it puts a strain on all of us. I do think that disney should do something for us.....yes. Something in the means of comping out trip our offering another one. After all, if they get us here again, they make more money from us. Did we start out looking for this.....no

Also for reference, DD is not your average size 14 year old, she about 5'10"-5'11", so she is very tall. Have thousands ridden this ride without fail, yes they have. But how many others have ridden other rides and then all of a sudden someone gets hurt?? And they apparently know about this bar up front. A design flaw??? Maybe maybe not. but apparently 1 in a million do have it happen. I have heard from others who get stuck, but were able to free themselves. If that happened to me, im sure i would have just thought to myself as the others did to be more careful. i would not have probably even told disney as the others did not.

ill try to be on every now and again to update and reply, but we are going to try and have a better day tomorrow at mgm, epcot, and finally dinner at liberty tree at MK.

Thanks to all who sent kind wishes to us and gave great suggestions.

 

[TammiMcMan]

If it happens in our studio we pay med expenses. None of this admits guilt but is just the right thing to do. Disney should pay the bills get them appropriate accomodations to help the child enjoy the rest of the trip and check up on the family.

My guess is that the photography studio you work for doesn't get tens of thousands of visitors each day. While this injury could very well turn out to be a design flaw, unfortunately, based on the number of bogus claims that Disney has to deal with, they are not going to pay first and investigate later. I know we have some lawyers at the DIS, I'd love to hear their take on the message that Disney's paying all the bills doesn't imply an admission of guilt. As to them calling and checking up on a guest, I've read instances where they have done that. The fact that they reportedly have not in this case, is making me lean towards either the fact that this young lady was standing on the ride, or red flags went up when dad started making phone calls asking what was going to be done for them.

The OP stated that he has health insurance. They will have a claims department to work out any reimbursements if the investigation finds fault with the ride. I'm not sure what you mean by appropriate accomdations, but they did offer a wheelchair. OP declined because his wife had a bad back and couldn't push her DD. He wanted an ECV, which Disney cannot rent to anyone under 18 years of age because they are contracted through a 3rd party and this is their policy.

I guess there are probably two reasons why I'm a bit cynical. First of all, if it was my teenager, the first thing I would ask is what the heck he was doing that caused the injury. My apologies to the dad, but teens are not known for their common sense and they will band together. Secondly, I've seen too many of these types of threads exposed in the end. Once someone starts looking for trip compensation or a return trip on Disney, I too see the proverbial red flag. In the end, we'll probably never know how this one turned out. In the meantime, may I suggest we all lay off the caffeine for a while and switch over to a nice relaxing herbal tea

 

[mickeyfan2]

Why should there be seatbelts? Why can't people just follow the rules? Sit your butt in the seat and keep your feet on the floor. Keep your arms and head in the ride vehicle. Really not that hard to understand. I'd rather not have to be strapped in because there are idiots out there that don't follow the rules.

If this idiocy keeps up they will be putting us into suits that all we can do is look forward. That would keep out hands/arms/feet/legs where they should be.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

You have got to be kidding!
The girl who got injured was 14 years old and she is 5 feet 10 inches tall.
If Disney raises the height limit because someone who is 5'10' got injured then most of us would not be able to ride Splash Mountain!

This is the a quote from page 20 post #299 of this thread:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=12530467#post12530467

My bad...I was thinking of the other trhead I posted on. It would be insane to raise the height requirement but maybe an age restriction to riding alone. Just for those parents who are bashing the OP for letting their 14 year old ride with her siblings.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

Umm I think you DID say that - whether it's what you meant only you can know but you did say it......



And I'm sure my sister would agree with me 100% - like me she is a born sceptic!!!!!!

Show me where I said they should get a free vacation?

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

Why should there be seatbelts? Why can't people just follow the rules? Sit your butt in the seat and keep your feet on the floor. Keep your arms and head in the ride vehicle. Really not that hard to understand. I'd rather not have to be strapped in because there are idiots out there that don't follow the rules.

She is a child a teen for that matter. I am sure NOONE on this board has done anything idiotic at 14? God the compassion on this thread is just killing me.

 

[cinmell]

Why should there be seatbelts? Why can't people just follow the rules? Sit your butt in the seat and keep your feet on the floor. Keep your arms and head in the ride vehicle. Really not that hard to understand. I'd rather not have to be strapped in because there are idiots out there that don't follow the rules.

She is a child a teen for that matter. I am sure NOONE on this board has done anything idiotic at 14? God the compassion on this thread is just killing me.

I agree with MosMom. People need to sit down and keep arms & legs in the vehicle and feet on the floor. I believe a 14 year old is old enough to understand these rules and realize that following these rules will help to keep them from getting hurt/injured.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

I agree with MosMom. People need to sit down and keep arms & legs in the vehicle and feet on the floor. I believe a 14 year old is old enough to understand these rules and realize that following these rules will help to keep them from getting hurt/injured.

in rational discussion they can make that choice but in the thick of it they are not capable. So many teens make bad choices because they don't think bad will happen to them. Through life experinces they learn they are not invincible. She will probably never stand on a ride again if that is what she did.

But hundreds of teens prove that they don't have the decision making capabilities that adults do. They cannot anticipate the consequences as well as adults. That is why so many teens die in car accidents. It is from lack of experience and they think they will not crash. Speeding factors into a majority of crashes. If they truely understood the impact of their actions accidents would be less.

She is just a kid who may have made a mistake.

 

[wvjules]

But hundreds of teens prove that they don't have the decision making capabilities that adults do. They cannot anticipate the consequences as well as adults. That is why so many teens die in car accidents. It is from lack of experience and they think they will not crash. Speeding factors into a majority of crashes. If they truely understood the impact of their actions accidents would be less.

She is just a kid who may have made a mistake.

Then she shouldn't have been unsupervised in a major themepark. Either she's a kid who can't think and should be supervised or she's responsible enough to be accountable for her actions. Can't be both.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

Then she shouldn't have been unsupervised in a major themepark. Either she's a kid who can't think and should be supervised or she's responsible enough to be accountable for her actions. Can't be both.

If she did this she would have done it if the parents were waiting at the bottom of the ride or not. Kids make mistakes no matter how responsible they are. The same is true for adults. Disney allows teens unsupervised in the parks why should the parents feels she would have been less than safe there?

 

[Hannathy]

And she would have been safe if she followed those hard instructions, stay seated (if it turns out she did stand- which I tend to believe) Like I said before I have witnessed accident victims change their statements when push came to shove so we will see....

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

And she would have been safe if she followed those hard instructions, stay seated (if it turns out she did stand- which I tend to believe) Like I said before I have witnessed accident victims change their statements when push came to shove so we will see....

more blamimg the victim......it is such a shame. What makes the standing more believable than the foot getting stuck?

As much as I try to remember I have no idea what is in the front of the inside of the log.

The father said she didn't stand why not take his word. If you noticed they have vistsed the dis boards for a long time. It isn't like they just joined they are disney lovers too.

 

[mickeymousemom]

in rational discussion they can make that choice but in the thick of it they are not capable. So many teens make bad choices because they don't think bad will happen to them. Through life experinces they learn they are not invincible. She will probably never stand on a ride again if that is what she did.

But hundreds of teens prove that they don't have the decision making capabilities that adults do. They cannot anticipate the consequences as well as adults. That is why so many teens die in car accidents. It is from lack of experience and they think they will not crash. Speeding factors into a majority of crashes. If they truely understood the impact of their actions accidents would be less.

She is just a kid who may have made a mistake.

ITA! and couldn't have said it better. Any expert on adolescence will tell you this. There's a big difference between KNOWING what's right and wrong and being able to totally rationalize it every second. They just aren't capable of it, which is why teens do this sort of thing ALL the time...Nope, not all teens do it, but many certainly do their share of sneaky and/or daredevil activities without a thought about it. It's a fact of life. No one knows but the teens themselves, MAYBE a CM or 2, and any cameras that were there. Regardless, the judging of others that goes on here is ridiculous.

To the Stepdad of the girl injured: Don't let this get to you...and don't leave the DIS. If need be, back away from any discussion of this incident for awhile and let things cool down. There are many holier than thou, judgmental, and self-righteous people in this world. If your DD did stand up, then I'm guessing she has learned her lesson and won't do it again. If she didn't, then she knows it and that's what matters. It's easy to judge others when we haven't been in their situation. I hope your trip ends up well!