The ride accident attorneys at Denena & Points report that the IAAPA (International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions) states that 1,086 amusement ride injuries occurred in 2009 in the United States. The Association considered 65 of those amusement ride accidents “serious.” But you should note that the IAAPA statistics only include injuries that occurred on fixed site amusement rides.
Fixed site rides are those at permanent theme park attractions like Six Flags and Disneyland. Accidents on the amusement rides at, for instance, the Texas State Fair and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (HLSR) go unreported in IAAPA statistics.
So the fatal fall of a roller coaster rider at the HLSR in 2010 and the severe injury fall of a 3-year-old girl at the HLSR in 2011 are not even included in the IAAPA statistics. And because they move all over the country, and receive repeated disassembly and assembly sometimes by unqualified workers, the traveling amusement rides are likely far more dangerous to the rider than those at fixed site permanent theme parks.
But the IAAPA says that amusement park guests rode 1.7 billion rides in 2009. So the rate of injuries from amusement park rides, at least at fixed sites, remains relatively low. But as with any type of generally reassuring statistic, if you are the statistic, there is little comfort for you in the overall low number.
If you were injured on an unsafe amusement ride, contact our experienced ride accident attorneys for a free and confidential legal consultation. Our knowledgeable attorneys are among the very few injury attorneys in the nation to have practical, hands on experience handling high profile amusement ride accidents on behalf of injured clients in need of help. Call us toll free at 877-307-9500 or use our convenient online contact features to reach us.