Media Coverage of Alton Towers

[Martin]

Cars and planes aren't the same thing. It's not self-righteous to point out just because one situation triggers a flashback, every situation that's in any way similar will too.

 

[Leah]

Nah you're right chief, let's all judge and condemn the opinions of a young person who's lost a limb. That's clearly the right thing to do.

I'm the last person to think just because someone's lost a Iimb instantly means they are right about everything (thinks back to "war hero who couldn't ride air because of discriminating restraints“) but in this case, she has every right to say this. I hate reading these articles as much as anyone - whether that's because I am biased towards towers (as we all will be), or because all of these articles are utter garbage that use more hyperbole than the oblivion queue line videos - but you really can't complain about what she says in this situation.

 

[Poisson]

The latest articles are clearly rehashes. I saw one which was 95% quotes strung together with a line or two linking the odd ones with a mega headline.

 

[GaryH]

No, because she didn't lose her leg in a car, or a plane, or a bus, she lost it on The Smiler, so doesn't want to ride The Smiler or see it opening again. Just like if you lost your leg in a plane crash you'd probably not want to fly again, and would definitely not want the plane flying again no matter how well they repaired it.

..... indeed, therefore, would I then be demanding that all airliners are destroyed, or that flying is banned? You missed the point. This is about the chances and risk of something happening. The others seem to have accepted that this was a freak accident, probably of which they had more change of winning the Lotto than being involved in an accident like this.

 

[TheMan]

She's not said she wants Towers to close or fail @GaryH though has she? Neither does she want all coasters to be banned.

You have to remember, this is one of the worst coaster accidents there's been.

Nothing's going to take away from that fact.

I'll still be going on it again, but we understand the technicality of it more. Most people don't, and ride expecting it to be entirely safe - which arguably, it was!

I never envisaged anything like this happening! I took mini-me on it thinking it was fail safe, understanding how seriously Towers have always taken their ride operations.

 

[GaryH]

Not sure where the closure bit came from Mr Man, but she wants the ride destroyed. Would be interesting to know if there were other "identical" Smiler rides around the world if she would also want them destroyed.

 

[Plastic Person]

At the end of the day, the ride's not going anywhere. So regardless of anybody's opinion on this girl's personal feelings, the opportunity will be there to ride it again later this month.

 

[Martin]

Would be interesting to know if there were other "identical" Smiler rides around the world if she would also want them destroyed.

Probably wouldn't, but what difference would it make? There aren't any Smiler clones anyway so it's a meaningless question and just reaching.

I can't believe we're acting shocked or like it's wrong that someone who lost their leg on something that's supposed to be safe isn't comfortable with it operating again.

 

[TheMan]

Probably wouldn't, but what difference would it make? There aren't any Smiler clones anyway so it's a meaningless question and just reaching.

I can't believe we're acting shocked or like it's wrong that someone who lost their leg on something that's supposed to be safe isn't comfortable with it operating again.

Exactly dude.

The only point I was making @GaryH (reading back I admit it's a bit confusing) is her attention is purely trained on the coaster, not the park, or other rides etc, given you were using flying analogously saying all flying - which by definition, would equate to all coasters, which would result in pretty much no Alton Towers - ergo, park close.

 

[Josh555]

Probably worth pointing out that the victim isn't requesting Alton Towers to close, or all roller coasters to be banned, just that the particular roller coaster that cost her a limb not to reopen, which is not an unreasonable view point. People making comparisons between car crashes and plane crashes are wide of the mark unless you're referring to the specific vessel which crashed, which its almost always going to be written off anyway.

This idea that the fact that it was human error negates any suggestion that the ride is unsafe are missing a key point. The victim doesn't care if the incident has been caused by a mechanical fault or human error, the point is it has happened and it shouldn't have been allowed to.

If the nature of the mechanism allows for human error to cause something so devastating then there may not be a fault on behalf of the ride, but there is a huge fault with the design. Presumably the point is that rides are designed so that human error is not going to be able to cause incidents like this, I make mistakes all the time, most employees do, if it is so easy for such a mistake to have such grave consequences then there is a fundamental operating policy that is at question here.

I realise the counter argument here is that the ride has now got extra safety features, but presumably when it initially passed health and safety the people responsible were happy that the events of last June would not be possible.

My intention here isn't to suggest for a second I want the ride closed, quite the opposite, I'm going myself on March 19 and will be riding it. But the fact that the incident was down to human error doesn't make it any better at all, certainly not to the victim.

More to the point, there is an argument being made that potential visitors to the park just read the headlines and don't get into the root of the issue, which is probably true in many cases. But even if they did, would the outcome appease many? If I found out that if someone forgot to check my harness on a roller coaster that it could depart without it being secure I wouldn't be happy, that would be human error, but presumably there are systems in place to prevent the train leaving the station if there is a restraint inconsistency. I can't imagine many members of the public would simply think 'oh it's human error' it won't happen again. More so the likely thought is 'this ride is subject to human error, I'm placing my life in the hands of one indovidual, not numerous checks etc that the ride has gone through to be ridden.' And enhanced safety restrictions will do little to tackle it, simply doing what should have been done 2 years ago is not going to be changing anyone's mind.

Again, I'll be riding it because I'm sure it won't happen again, but to right it off as human error therefore it's safe is a little optimistic in my opinion.

 

[TheMan]

If the nature of the mechanism allows for human error to cause something so devastating then there may not be a fault on behalf of the ride, but there is a huge fault with the design.

Damn good point that is.

 

[Rob]

But you have to be able to manually re-set/start a rollercoaster. If the operating system didn't allow that then The Smiler would probably never have been able to operate again after its first stall, as taking the train off would mean it could never ever clear the block without manual invervention.

This was covered a lot at the time but procedures state (I believe) that it should never be operated in manual mode with guests on board, certainly not without checking that all of the track in the block ahead was clear. There was a clear (and utterly stupid) breach of operating procedures that lead to the incident. Merlin have now seeked to enchance safety procedures in this area, more details of which will be released in April.

 

[TheMan]

I guess the issue here is, when you have a machine of such magnitude, and potentially so destructive, a stream of staff working part through the year in a manner that is not a profession, such as even a bus driver for example (who are arguably equitable in terms of how many people they have to ferry safely in a day, if not LESS).

It's not something I've considered before @Rob, but I do think @Josh555 has a good point.

They're putting extra procedures in place, which are very welcome, but it does seem ludicrous to me that lacking live video feed of the ride when the ops can't see easily was really quite absurd!

I actually had assumed the ops would have that visual already tbh.

 

[Josh555]

But you have to be able to manually re-set/start a rollercoaster. If the operating system didn't allow that then The Smiler would probably never have been able to operate again after its first stall, as taking the train off would mean it could never ever clear the block without manual invervention.

To clarify, I'm not suggesting that the ride should have no manual elements to it at all, as clearly there may arise situations where the computer can't make the decision. Equally, I guess a reverse situation to last June may occur where human intervention may be necessary to prevent an incident.

My point is more that it should be damned difficult for a negligent action to amount to having serious consequences. Take the example of using a computer in an Internet cafe, the owners won't trust customers to not download volatile material so relevant provisions are in place to prevent that from happening, however, should they wish to access blocked content themselves they will be able to do so.

I don't know a) the extent of training or b) the system they use for employees at AT but my personal belief is anyone who can override a system should be highly competent at doing so. If that means the ride has to sit on the lift hill for 10 minutes whilst that person gets on site to supervise the override themselves then so be it. You can still give the less experienced staff access to something like an emergency stop button (for example to be used if one train is further along than it should be so they can halt the lift hill to allow distance to be created) which obviously you can't wait 10 minutes for someone else to do. But it should be very hard to be able to override a system as critical as that one, I dare say that if it had been so difficult this may not have occurred although that's speculative on my part.

 

[Rob]

They're putting extra procedures in place, which are very welcome, but it does seem ludicrous to me that lacking live video feed of the ride when the ops can't see easily was really quite absurd!

I actually had assumed the ops would have that visual already tbh.

They did. But now there are more visuals than before. As far as I am aware the whole ride could be seen via CCTV, some areas more detailed than others. It's harsh but the main reasoning for this whole incident is that one or two people did not do their jobs properly. I don't mind saying that as it is what I have believed from the very start. Surely if you know 5 trains are in operation, you would account for all 5 before manually re-starting the ride after it had been stopped because the block ahead was not clear? Even if it wasn't overly clear that a train had stalled, it would have been clear to look at the blocks and count the trains visible. If there are only 4 in break/lift areas then there's a problem!

 

[UserDeleted]

Is this a smiler thread?

 

[Altonadvocate1]

Unfortunately, sensationalism sells and accurate journalism doesn't.

Just imagine trying to sell the story of a routine stoppage without spicing it up.

ALTON TOWERS RIDERS PROTECTED BY SAFETY SYSTEM FOR 3 MINUTES.

It came to The Mirrors attention that Alton Towers Air Roller coaster came to to a gentle stop as a safety system ensured adequate spacing between the carriages.

Riders were left suspended in comfortable neoprene vests 6 feet in the air as the failsafe computerised safety system did the job it was designed to do in full compliance with British standard HG175 and HSTM - 24.

The ride which had been carefully inspected by appropriately qualified technicians that very morning then safely returned to the station to delight of its ecstatic passengers. An Alton Towers spokesman apologies for the 3 minute delay and surprised the delighted riders with a free fast pass. Rider Dick Steel, 24 of Wolverhampton said "it was great, I can"t wait to ride again".

OR THE SAME STORY IN TRUE MIRROR STYLE.

ALTON TOWERS TERROR AS RIDERS LEFT DANGLING, SUSPENDED IN THE AIR ONLY WEEKS AFTER HORROR SMILER CRASH.

It came to The Mirrors attention that Alton Towers Air Roller coaster came to a crunching holt leaving a train full of thrill seaking sicko's dangling over a terrifying precipice. For the riders it seemed an eternity as they preyed for God to save them from a horrific collision.

The minimum wage teenage staff ran around equally terrified unsure what to do as the sickening scenario unfolded.

After what seemed an eternity and by the grace of God the carriage finally returned to the station, where grown men were released from their shackles and kissed the ground whilst sobbing uncontrollably.

A visibly shaken Alton Towers spokesperson refused to comment? But The Mirror can exclusively reveal that AT have continued to run the ride without a full investigation despite the fact that it could happen again and did so another 8 times that same day.

OK TRINITY MIRROR, WHEN CAN I START?

 

[Danza91]

Unfortunately, sensationalism sells and accurate journalism doesn't.

Just imagine trying to sell the story of a routine stoppage without spicing it up.

ALTON TOWERS RIDERS PROTECTED BY SAFETY SYSTEM FOR 3 MINUTES.

It came to The Mirrors attention that Alton Towers Air Roller coaster came to to a gentle stop as a safety system ensured adequate spacing between the carriages.

Riders were left suspended in comfortable neoprene vests 6 feet in the air as the failsafe computerised safety system did the job it was designed to do in full compliance with British standard HG175 and HSTM - 24.

The ride which had been carefully inspected by appropriately qualified technicians that very morning then safely returned to the station to delight of its ecstatic passengers. An Alton Towers spokesman apologies for the 3 minute delay and surprised the delighted riders with a free fast pass. Rider Dick Steel, 24 of Wolverhampton said "it was great, I can"t wait to ride again".

OR THE SAME STORY IN TRUE MIRROR STYLE.

ALTON TOWERS TERROR AS RIDERS LEFT DANGLING, SUSPENDED IN THE AIR ONLY WEEKS AFTER HORROR SMILER CRASH.

It came to The Mirrors attention that Alton Towers Air Roller coaster came to a crunching holt leaving a train full of thrill seaking sicko's dangling over a terrifying precipice. For the riders it seemed an eternity as they preyed for God to save them from a horrific collision.

The minimum wage teenage staff ran around equally terrified unsure what to do as the sickening scenario unfolded.

After what seemed an eternity and by the grace of God the carriage finally returned to the station, where grown men were released from their shackles and kissed the ground whilst sobbing uncontrollably.

A visibly shaken Alton Towers spokesperson refused to comment? But The Mirror can exclusively reveal that AT have continued to run the ride without a full investigation despite the fact that it could happen again and did so another 8 times that same day.

OK TRINITY MIRROR, WHEN CAN I START?

And that is how the media industry works, which some people in this topic can't quite seem to grasp.

 

[Altonadvocate1]

And that is how the media industry works, which some people in this topic can't quite seem to grasp.

Exactly.

It's a cruel world.

Cats eat mice.

Lions eat wildabeast.

Half the world hate's and wants to destroy the other half.

I'd love to live in a utopia where everybody treats everybody else with respect, but the world isn't like that.

Newspapers will publish whatever sells and though I may hate them for it they don't care about the livelihoods of employees, the enjoyment of nerds like us or what is right and just. Their personal need for profit will always take precedence over what is ethical and right.

Well that's me depressed everybody for the rest of the evening.

Never mind... in a hundred years we'll all be dead...


I'm normally an optomistic poster... finally giving the more cynical members of the forum a run for their money... I may have to change my name.

 

[James]

Galactica had a breakdown on the lift hill it seems. Oh sorry, I mean the utter death trap of a theme park left guests helplessly 'upside down' fearing for their lives....

Since it just seems to be the Metro and Mirror that have reported this so far (I'm sure more will follow within the next hour or two), it shows that they're clutching at straws to continue to get clicks over a pretty boring story by now! But hey, British media for you!