Incident on The Smiler 02/06/2015

[spinba11]

Saw has been testing a lot recently, talk is that they're trying to recreate the stalled scenario as to what happened on The Smiler and see how the coaster reacts, ie. the cars e-stopping.

Gets hopes up that it will reopen by the 13th of July, then remembers why it was closed, sad to hear that another person has lost their leg but their lift isn't ruined.

 

[Leah]

So, imagine that you are one of the people who has had their legs amputated. So far you have been TOLD by the media that:

• Your life is ruined
• You have weeks of painful surgery ahead of you
• You are a professional dancer
• You are on your first date, having been together months
• You will never walk again
• You boyfriend's knees/face have been smashed
• You will receive millions in compensation (by which I mean more than they will get)
• It is disgraceful how Alton towers responded (even after you have praised them)

And shown pictures and videos of you basically losing your leg and in intense pain.

 

[Spark]

Or they don't read/follow the news and just listen to their solicitors

 

[Kelpie]

For reference, the Associated Press release, and Lawyers statements:

SMILER CRASH VICTIM'S LEG AMPUTATED
By Press Association (00.17 27th June)

A victim of the Alton Towers rollercoaster crash has had her right leg amputated below the knee, her lawyer said.
Vicky Balch, 20, from Lancashire, was one of five people seriously injured when the Smiler ride collided with an empty carriage on June 2.
Her lawyer Paul Paxton said Miss Balch's bravery in fighting to keep her leg "has not been rewarded" and her leg was amputated yesterday.
Mr Paxton, head of personal injury at Stewarts Law, said: "My client, Vicky Balch, has had her right leg amputated below the knee.
"Vicky has had a long and incredibly painful fight to retain her leg.
Regrettably, her bravery has not been rewarded. The step was taken to remove the leg following seven bouts of surgery. Further surgery will be required in the immediate future, which may involve a more acute amputation.
"The family continue to be grateful for all well-wishers, though they do seek privacy during this difficult period of rehabilitation."
Miss Balch and her family thanked medical staff for their care and support. Miss Balch has previously said that she "just wanted to die" as she waited hours to be rescued from the ride.
Fellow victim Leah Washington, 17, had her leg amputated above the knee.
Miss Balch was sitting in the front seats alongside Miss Washington, Miss Washington's boyfriend Joe Pugh, 18, who shattered his knee, and Daniel Thorpe, 27, a hotel assistant-manager from Buxton in Derbyshire who was treated for a
collapsed lung and fractured leg.
Chandaben Chauhan, 49, of Wednesbury, West Midlands, also suffered injuries.
Miss Balch, who had a four-and-a-half hour wait for rescue, has previously told the BBC: "It felt like slow motion. We banged into the car in front. I felt the bars go into my knees; we moved backwards and the car went into us again.
"I passed out. I was awoken by Dan shouting my name. Everyone was screaming and I was in excruciating pain. I looked down and I could see blood all over.
"The bars were in my right knee.
"The only thought that was going through my mind for the hours and hours that we were stuck was that we were going to die. If I was going to survive I would never walk again, that was certain.
"I thought it was never going to end. I just wanted to die."

---

Update on Vicky Balch, victim of Alton Towers crash
(received 21.44 on 26th June, embargoed until 22.00)

Vicky Balch undergoes surgery to amputate her right leg
Following the incident at Alton Towers on Tuesday 2 June, Paul Paxton, Head of Personal Injury at Stewarts Law, has confirmed on the request of the family:-
"This morning, my client, Vicky Balch, has had her right leg amputated below the knee. Vicky has had a long and incredibly painful fight to retain her leg. Regrettably, her bravery has not been rewarded. The step was taken to remove the leg following seven bouts of surgery. Further surgery will be required in the immediate future, which may involve a more acute amputation.
The family continue to be grateful for all well-wishers, though they do seek privacy during this difficult period of rehabilitation. In particular, Vicky and the family would like to thank the staff at the University Hospital for their care and support."

---

Vicky Balch is NOT a dancer by career - she's studying a degree in international spa management (originally it was misreported as a sports performance qualification) at the university of Derby.
But there's no reason she can't continue to do these things, despite her injuries, if she wants to.

 

[DiogoJ42]

She's not a dancer!!!!

Don't pretty much all young ladies dance in some form or another? I often hear the teenage girls next door singing loudly. Doesn't make them singers though.

 

[phildenholm]

Sad sad news, I hope things get much better for all the victims soon. I did see a picture somewhere of the damaged car and you could see the front was v'ed in at the middle, i guess the impact somehow pulled the middle in and cause the 2 ladies said in the middle seats to have such horrific injuries.

 

[phildenholm]

new loading mech and cars, although not as wide

 

[Leah]

So, at the moment, all the tabloids have got right is that the smiler crashed and the names of those involved.

Also, just to clarify, the most injured were on there for hours? I thought it would be 30 minutes(ish)

 

[Stevie]

It took about four or five hours to evacuate everybody from the train.

 

[Leah]

I don't mean everyone, I mean the most injured 4, at the front.

 

[Alexsutton]

A lot of people seem to be discussing the front railing on the vehicles and that things might have been different if it wasn't there, like a floorless train. I agree that things would have been different but I think they would have been worse, not better. The rail didn't magically move into them, if the rail wasn't there then their legs would have gone directly into the stalled car so there wouldn't be any significant change to the injuries. If anything, from the photos of the crash, the railing and the vehicle floor will have acted like a 'crumple zone' and absorbed a little bit of the impact force before it reached the passengers.

 

[TomLad]

Putting in a floorless style train would make even fewer people go on the ride. Think of it like the GP would do, if there is less in front of you then you are more likely to have worse injuries if it crashed again. At the end of the day, rollercoasters are not designed to crash, ever. They don't need to change the cars out so it would protect people in the occurrence of another crash, but stop it from happening again. Even if it just looked stronger at the front I'm sure people would think it was safer, even if the actual reason for improved safety was just procedure and ride program changes. Point is, removing any bar that could crush your legs would make people think that their legs will be the crumple zone. Like someone already said, the car most likely took a lot of the energy away on impact. So yeah, floorless/fewer parts at the front is frankly a ridiculous idea and they don't really need to change the train design, just how it appears?

At the end of the day it should be impossible for 2 trains to be in the same block and the cause for that is IMO the only thing that needs to be fixed.

 

[Pixie-Ro]

I don't mean everyone, I mean the most injured 4, at the front.

I think they were treating them on the train and couldn't move them until they were in a stable condition.

 

[James]

Don't take my word but I think it was at least 2 or 3 hours until they started getting people off.

It was reported they were treated while on the train though, due to the injuries, so they weren't left up there without anything for hours in end.

 

[Rick]

Merlin is one of the world's richest companies.

Merlin has a fair share of debt, not surprising or abnormal given its speedy rise.

 

[Tarquin]

I don't mean everyone, I mean the most injured 4, at the front.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-33155853

Both Vicky Balch and common sense dictate that it would have been impossible for any of the riders to have been removed from the train in 30 minutes. Considering it took 11 minutes to call 999, the journey time for the ambulance service to get there, the time taken to construct a platform beneath the train, the fact that the train was still mobile, the 45 degree angle of the train, the need to cut the front row riders out of the train by the fire brigade and the time taken to safely get those passengers to the ground while ensuring they didn't bleed out would not have been possible in a few hours, let alone 30 minutes.

Putting in a floorless style train would make even fewer people go on the ride. Think of it like the GP would do, if there is less in front of you then you are more likely to have worse injuries if it crashed again. At the end of the day, rollercoasters are not designed to crash, ever. They don't need to change the cars out so it would protect people in the occurrence of another crash, but stop it from happening again. Even if it just looked stronger at the front I'm sure people would think it was safer, even if the actual reason for improved safety was just procedure and ride program changes. Point is, removing any bar that could crush your legs would make people think that their legs will be the crumple zone. Like someone already said, the car most likely took a lot of the energy away on impact. So yeah, floorless/fewer parts at the front is frankly a ridiculous idea and they don't really need to change the train design, just how it appears?

At the end of the day it should be impossible for 2 trains to be in the same block and the cause for that is IMO the only thing that needs to be fixed.

I completely agree with the thought that floorless/fewer parts at the front of the train is a ridiculous idea. I completely disagree that the train design doesn't need to change. It's true that rollercoasters are not designed to crash but that was also the case before this incident and if design changes could have prevented five people having such horrific injuries, then I'm all for it. I would struggle to see how someone could disagree with that sentiment if I'm honest. I really don't think that changes such as adding a crumple zone to the front and back of each car would affect ride experience either. Certainly I can see it improving public trust in the ride.

 

[AliceHL91]

I really don't think that changes such as adding a crumple zone to the front and back of each car would affect ride experience either. Certainly I can see it improving public trust in the ride.

I'm not sure about improving public trust. It would make it look like they're expecting another collision, and I'd expect that alone would put a lot of people off.

 

[Dar]

I would fully expect ANY redesign, track or train, to be grabbed with both hands by the media as evidence that the ride wasn't safe and had to be changed to be made safe.

As for train design, adding length or bulk in the form of crumple zones would seriously impact train flexibility and other factors.

 

[Tarquin]

I'm not sure about improving public trust. It would make it look like they're expecting another collision, and I'd expect that alone would put a lot of people off.

Fair point but I'd argue that they need to be seen to be doing something. It's very easy for Alton Towers to say that they've improved the operating system of the ride and re-written their staff procedures etc but these things were apparently done to Spinball Whizzer for example and (correct me if I'm wrong) but not even the enthusiasts on this forum can figure out exactly what they've done differently. Admittedly it would come with an announcement if it were about the Smiler but the fact still remains that it relies on the public trusting a company who previously allowed two trains to collide on a ride that they had previously claimed was safe.

I would fully expect ANY redesign, track or train, to be grabbed with both hands by the media as evidence that the ride wasn't safe and had to be changed to be made safe.

As for train design, adding length or bulk in the form of crumple zones would seriously impact train flexibility and other factors.

It's lucky then that Alton Towers and Gerstlauer have a lot of time to test and account for those other factors. I disagree that it would affect train flexibility however as it could easily be added on in the form of another flexible row connected in the same way that the current rows of seats are - just with no seats on.

But I think it goes further than that. We all thought - myself included - that it was impossible for two trains to be on the same section of track at the same time. I believe it would be actually be negligent of Merlin to not prepare for the same event occurring again. Whether it was human error, system malfunction or a unique set of circumstances doesn't matter, it was possible for it to happen on the Smiler and there's no way to be certain that another unique set of circumstances leading to the same event won't happen again.

 

[Dave]

It's impossible for 2 trains to be in the same block in normal operation. But rides often have to run on manual after a brake down.

I would imagine the safety protocols added to Spinball are more to do with restarting a stopped ride, rather than running the ride in normal operation.