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Incident on The Smiler 02/06/2015

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Aerial photo of when the cars were being taken off the track, look how mangled the front is.

NQjQnw8.png
 
Dave said:
It is but it never runs more than one train at a time, neither does Speed.
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Speed and Rage frequently run two cars at busy periods and Speed has been known to increase to three cars during the very busy summer months. Speed's throughput would be appalling on one car with a long queue.
 
I'm a rail worker and in newer sections of track we have things called axle counters which count the train wheels in and count them out, this usually works in place of a track circuit as it is seen as safer because there could be a part of the train still in the section and has came unhooked.
I believe that these would be on roller coasters in case of this happening.
Usually you would have big magnets after a signal. These would deploy the trains emergency brakes if there was a train in the section ahead, I think it's called atps although I can't be sure as its not field of expertise.

So the computer would show that 4 axles are in the block yet something/someone has allowed more sets into the the section. In railway terms this would only be allowed in maintenance purposes. As you can have multiple trains roaming around doing different maintenance tasks. We have something called wheels free at the end of maintenance sessions so that these counters can be reset. Which further indicates to me that someone has reset the ride not knowing about the valleyed train.

As someone mentioned about operators getting tired and bored, I believe they change frequently in the same way that lifeguards do at a swimming pool to prevent this.
 
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Johno said:
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...de-evacuated-a-week-after-rollercoaster-crash

#expectedbetteroftheguardian

Really, how the hell is this a story?
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Quote taken from article:

A visitor to the park who contacted the Guardian after witnessing part of Wednesday’s incident said he sensed that something was wrong when he heard children shouting. “I glanced over and noticed a guy with safety harnesses on,” he said. “I was on another ride at that point. When I got off, they were taking people off the Octonauts ride. At that point, Alton Towers operatives with helmets and harnesses on were involved. There was a lady next to me whose son was really distressed and she was shouting up to him to stay calm and that everything would be all right.

“My wife and I just decided to leave the park at that point with our children. They did absolutely nothing to stop the children and parents going into that part of the park to witness what was going on. On the way out, we went into the guest services bit of the park, where I asked if it was possible to speak to somebody about the incident. I was told they could do a customer feedback questionnaire. I said: ‘Are you being serious?’”

They weren't even on the ride! What do you expect. It is people like these who whent the smiler to shut because "it is a health risk" , if you were on the ride expect a fastrack.

But then again, I don't even know how this classes as news.
 
Passengers in Walk down stairs SHOCKER. Tim Bumfluff of Norwich said "I couldn't believe it, a little kid wanted to get off because he didn't like the ride and the Staff stopped the ride to help him"
This comes a week after passengers of the ' Black Buccaneer' At Chessington World of Adventures were forced to wait in the blazing heat for 4 minutes while vomit was cleaned off a seat. Jean Poole from Surrey was furious. "We'd already been in a queue for 12 minutes and we were forced to stand there in the in temperatures of 24 degrees!"
 
Johno said:
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...de-evacuated-a-week-after-rollercoaster-crash

#expectedbetteroftheguardian

Really, how the hell is this a story?
Click to expand...
Must have been terrifying to witness. I'm not surprised he felt the need to grab his family and make a dash for the exit...

If he knew there was something going on that he might not want to see, why did he go and have a nosey? Why not offer reassurance to people rather than running to guest services to complain? What was he hoping for them to do about "the incident" if he didn't think a feedback form was adequate - interview them all? Offer counselling?

I bet he is a really popular guy lol ;)
 
Leah said:
Quote taken from article:

A visitor to the park who contacted the Guardian after witnessing part of Wednesday’s incident said he sensed that something was wrong when he heard children shouting. “I glanced over and noticed a guy with safety harnesses on,” he said. “I was on another ride at that point. When I got off, they were taking people off the Octonauts ride. At that point, Alton Towers operatives with helmets and harnesses on were involved. There was a lady next to me whose son was really distressed and she was shouting up to him to stay calm and that everything would be all right.

“My wife and I just decided to leave the park at that point with our children. They did absolutely nothing to stop the children and parents going into that part of the park to witness what was going on. On the way out, we went into the guest services bit of the park, where I asked if it was possible to speak to somebody about the incident. I was told they could do a customer feedback questionnaire. I said: ‘Are you being serious?’”

They weren't even on the ride! What do you expect. It is people like these who whent the smiler to shut because "it is a health risk" , if you were on the ride expect a fastrack.

But then again, I don't even know how this classes as news.
Click to expand...

I think i misread the report.. Not that interested.
I thought it was the guy riding Octonauts who was distressed so had to be evacuated. Get a grip man! Pfft!
 
Wait ...... hold on .......

Now that i have fully composed myself from fits of 9am laughter let me just say.

The most amazing thing about this to me, is that somebody who claims to be a professional journalist, actually took the time to listen to a story, told to them by a man who is clearly a massive attention seeker.
By the gentleman's own admission, he wasn't involved and it was nothing to do with him, but he grabbed his family and headed straight to refund ville anyhow, as if somehow, the park stopping the ride, in order to aide, what i can assume was a disabled guest WHO WAS DISTRESSED made that ride so dangerous, him and his family were in immininent danger.

This is not news, the park should not have been contacted for comment, the member of the public who felt so unsafe that he grabbed his family and wanted to discuss this incident and i imagine, wrangle compensation, for an incident he had nothing to do with, and then apparently left the park. HAD NO NEED TO CALL THE PAPERS. There was no incident here, this is careless reporting. I could make a slim argument that anything relating to the royal family might be deemed more news worthy than this tripe.

Well done to staff at the park for recognising that somebody was distressed on the ride, and so stopping the ride and getting him off of it.

The guardian were certainly clutching at straws with this tripe.
 
Is anyone else worried that this is spiraling out of control. I read an article in The Sun on Monday that claimed Thirteen "Broke Down" and it was a disgrace and people were leaving the park in fear. I have actually had 2 friends cancel their trips to theme parks because they are worried. Its fear mongering at its worse and is seriously going to damage the reputation of UK theme parks if it keeps going on this road!
 
It'll blow over shortly. The papers need a bit of 'Padding' to sell the same story again. If we were looking at real 'News' they would just give an update on the condition of the passengers of The Smiler when they are released and move on to the next story. This doesn't make a story though so they need to pad it out with related material to give it some column inches.
 
When something more gruesome occurs that they can capitalise ie, so called islamic state do something front page worthy, or a natural disaster kills thousands, this will be like dust in a wind.
 
Indeed, this will blow over very quickly now I would imagine, until there is another major update. No doubt the press will be all over it once the results of the investigation are out (as long as they are interesting) and when The Smiler re-opens. In the interim Towers will know that standard events in the park such as breakdowns or ride evacs could make the press and be twisted.

:)
 
Ahh yes the great British press, and the great British public. "I stormed off, asked a bloke to complain he said fill in this, I said are you Serious?" No he wasn't series, he must have been having a joke. What next "as I was stood next to their Nemesisair ride, I noticed that people on there were looking terrified........... this was later clarified when screams of terror rang out as the ride went uncontrollable ride its track I thought poor devils and tutted at the wife. Minutes later another train appeared with some people with same expression on their face, so soon after one had just left, I felt hey up, haven't they learned a thing, I went stormed of and complained using a complaint form, from which I received a paper cut. Don't these people know about health and safety"

Like people have said this will go once ISIS/Bankers/mirrorgroup hacking/the murder of Katie Hopkins appears then it will be given a filler article page 3, next to Josie 21 from Rochdale, and a 2 for 1 voucher for merlin attractions.
 
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