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The Smiler Incident - What Happened

Dar said:
I don't think a 999 operator is necessarily going to believe a member of the public saying a roller coaster has stalled and crashed, I think they'd rather wait for official confirmation from the park that something has gone wrong that needs emergency attention.

I'd imagine that the full extent of the damage wasn't immediately apparent given the view of that particular bit of track from the outside.
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A roller coaster crashed! How much more "official conformation" would anyone need to know to understand that all is not well when you see that?

No 999 operator would ever brush off something like that. If they did, they would be sacked. I don't know if it's a generational thing but everyone seems to have an excuse these days, it's always someone else's responsibility, always someone else's fault.

I remember Police officers coming in to my school when I was a lad, and we were always told from a young age that "if in doubt, get to the nearest house or phone box and call 999!" I've always heeded that advice to this day and never regretted doing it. What do they teach these days, "If in doubt, grab your smart phone and start filming and post it to Facebook, it's someone else's problem."?

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I get that a member of the public could've easily called 999, but even if they did, I'm sure they'd need to contact towers first to find out how to get into the park and to alert security to a helicopter landing in the park. And while it may have helped, what's a member of the public going to know? At least towers could say what sort of services would be required (would a member of the public be able to say that they would require the mountain equipment they did to get to the train?)

You also need to consider that some people would have underestimated the seriousness of the crash. This isn't M&D's, towers had a near spotless safety record, and some people may have thought it wasnt a serious accident. There would also be people there who would assume that towers were already sorting It. Calling 999 is a scary thing, and if someone was convinced it had already been done, why would they?

Finally, how many people call 999 after a minor breakdown (especially since the crash)? Not sure I'd like to be the person who called when I had no real idea of what's going on.

People will judge me for this, but I don't care. I wouldn't have called if I was standing near the smiler when it crashed. I wouldn't have filmed either, but the thought of being that person who calls terrifies me. I'd probably assume that the staff were sorting it, and I'd be shocked that it happened.
 
I've been lurking here (and on other Towers forums) in the background for a number of years, and I'm now at the point to have my 5 minutes here, in the hope that stakeholders, decision makers or otherwise take a read.

I was an annual pass holder from 2003, firstly Towers then I moved onto Merlin. I've enjoyed Merlin parks more times than I can calculate. I've spent several thousands of pounds with the various Merlin brands. I was a huge fan of the experience offered in their parks. I was an ambassador for their product. I cannot emphasis enough how much confidence I had in them.

The day of the Smiler incident changed everything for me. I found I no longer wanted to visit. I visited because I wanted to escape the everyday troubles of life, but suddenly found myself worrying about safety, security, comfort and trust. All aspects I want to leave behind when I'm in these parks.

I have to be honest, I had very few concerns about ride operations before the incident. I was aware of incidents with the mine train separation, fire in a sky ride building etc but I was always able to park these concerns and carry on enjoying myself. I know most of the Towers coasters extremely well, I became familiar in their operation from a guest perspective. So when a seat belt check occurred I became used to the process for example. I never witnessed any concern over the operating procedures. The main thing I thought about was how young the people are with such significant responsibilities. I saw isolated moments of horseplay on station platforms, but never to a level I was concerned about - from a safety perspective. Gates were always closed, yellow lines respected, guest behaviour challenged when appropriate and an adequate level of professionalism, in often difficult conditions. In summary, I felt safe, that things were in control, we'll managed and maintained.

I was impressed with the Smiler as a ride, its design and construction. I made a special long distance trip the first Saturday it was open to the public. I got up at 4am and was in the queue for 9.30am. It was a really exciting day. As I write this I have the ride photo of my first ever go in front of me. Great memories. There is nothing like ‘that first ride’, because after that you get to know the turns and break runs and it becomes predictable.

This is why I’m sad. I don't feel able to go anymore. I’m 38 and have sufficient disposable income nowadays to go to any park anywhere in the world, but these parks are my ‘home’. I’ve shifted my spending to Disney Parks a lot more, with visits to Orlando, Tokyo and several to Paris just in the last 12 months. I have had a DLP pass for many years too. I get my coaster fix here these days.

So why am I here writing this piece? I no longer have confidence in Alton, Merlin and all their parks and resorts anymore. I want to tell them this. If I ever visit their parks I’ll not be thinking about enjoying myself, but thinking “have they checked my restraint?” and “if I get stuck, will they be able to reach me?” etc.

I don't have an easy solution for them. I often conclude, its time for Merlin to sell up. I realise that is probably unlikely or too difficult. But as long as its the same people running these places I don’t want to visit. Its about trust. Chances are I have sat in the very seats that were eventually involved in the crash. I feel the incident could have been avoided.

I’m so very sorry Merlin, its been an extremely rough period for all. I’m one of the loyal customers that use to come, and don't anymore. I never renewed my annual pass and don’t intend to. I can’t help but think that taking away my custom may lead to a much needed culture change. The challenge for you now is “how do you regain my trust?” Karl.
 
matthewgcole said:
A roller coaster crashed! How much more "official conformation" would anyone need to know to understand that all is not well when you see that?

No 999 operator would ever brush off something like that. If they did, they would be sacked. I don't know if it's a generational thing but everyone seems to have an excuse these days, it's always someone else's responsibility, always someone else's fault.

I remember Police officers coming in to my school when I was a lad, and we were always told from a young age that "if in doubt, get to the nearest house or phone box and call 999!" I've always heeded that advice to this day and never regretted doing it. What do they teach these days, "If in doubt, grab your smart phone and start filming and post it to Facebook, it's someone else's problem."?

Sent from my D6603 using Tapatalk
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As close as i can get to what should happens without getting shouted at by people.

999 call comes in from a guest. Call talker flags it to controller (standard practice one button on logging screen) and carries on logging info.
AT is a community responder for WMAS (local ambulance service).
Controller would alert AT medical Services to the call.
AT medical would dispatch to investigate.
AT medical would feed information back via WMAS incident desk phone number.
Whist this is going on an WMAS vehicle would be on route.
 
Towerslover said:
I also would have been scared to do so Leah, not knowing if I was doing the right thing or not.
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I respect the pair of you for your honesty. I find it worrying though that perhaps they're educating younger generations differently. Just out of interest, what would scare you about it?

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Each to their own. Personally, as horrifying as the crash was, I've never been put off going back to Towers. The accident was awful, but it was truly one in a million.
 
Leah said:
People will judge me for this, but I don't care. I wouldn't have called if I was standing near the smiler when it crashed. I wouldn't have filmed either, but the thought of being that person who calls terrifies me. I'd probably assume that the staff were sorting it, and I'd be shocked that it happened.
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Would you still leave dialling 999 to another person if you had just witness a loved one or close family member/friend in the crash?

Karl said:
I've been lurking here (and on other Towers forums) in the background for a number of years, and I'm now at the point to have my 5 minutes here, in the hope that stakeholders, decision makers or otherwise take a read.

I was an annual pass holder from 2003, firstly Towers then I moved onto Merlin. I've enjoyed Merlin parks more times than I can calculate. I've spent several thousands of pounds with the various Merlin brands. I was a huge fan of the experience offered in their parks. I was an ambassador for their product. I cannot emphasis enough how much confidence I had in them.

The day of the Smiler incident changed everything for me. I found I no longer wanted to visit. I visited because I wanted to escape the everyday troubles of life, but suddenly found myself worrying about safety, security, comfort and trust. All aspects I want to leave behind when I'm in these parks.

I have to be honest, I had very few concerns about ride operations before the incident. I was aware of incidents with the mine train separation, fire in a sky ride building etc but I was always able to park these concerns and carry on enjoying myself. I know most of the Towers coasters extremely well, I became familiar in their operation from a guest perspective. So when a seat belt check occurred I became used to the process for example. I never witnessed any concern over the operating procedures. The main thing I thought about was how young the people are with such significant responsibilities. I saw isolated moments of horseplay on station platforms, but never to a level I was concerned about - from a safety perspective. Gates were always closed, yellow lines respected, guest behaviour challenged when appropriate and an adequate level of professionalism, in often difficult conditions. In summary, I felt safe, that things were in control, we'll managed and maintained.

I was impressed with the Smiler as a ride, its design and construction. I made a special long distance trip the first Saturday it was open to the public. I got up at 4am and was in the queue for 9.30am. It was a really exciting day. As I write this I have the ride photo of my first ever go in front of me. Great memories. There is nothing like ‘that first ride’, because after that you get to know the turns and break runs and it becomes predictable.

This is why I’m sad. I don't feel able to go anymore. I’m 38 and have sufficient disposable income nowadays to go to any park anywhere in the world, but these parks are my ‘home’. I’ve shifted my spending to Disney Parks a lot more, with visits to Orlando, Tokyo and several to Paris just in the last 12 months. I have had a DLP pass for many years too. I get my coaster fix here these days.

So why am I here writing this piece? I no longer have confidence in Alton, Merlin and all their parks and resorts anymore. I want to tell them this. If I ever visit their parks I’ll not be thinking about enjoying myself, but thinking “have they checked my restraint?” and “if I get stuck, will they be able to reach me?” etc.

I don't have an easy solution for them. I often conclude, its time for Merlin to sell up. I realise that is probably unlikely or too difficult. But as long as its the same people running these places I don’t want to visit. Its about trust. Chances are I have sat in the very seats that were eventually involved in the crash. I feel the incident could have been avoided.

I’m so very sorry Merlin, its been an extremely rough period for all. I’m one of the loyal customers that use to come, and don't anymore. I never renewed my annual pass and don’t intend to. I can’t help but think that taking away my custom may lead to a much needed culture change. The challenge for you now is “how do you regain my trust?” Karl.
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I think the revelations revealed today with regards to the details leading up to this are shocking. I'm sure that the judge tomorrow with be the judge of all this and apply the appropriate sentencing and give additional recommendations.

Despite all this, I do feel that you are safer at a themepark than travelling in a car on the road. There are plenty of idiots in charge of driving vehicles on the roads.
 
andeyhart said:
Is it possible that the people on the ground genuinely didn't realise how bad the crash was?
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Short answers, yes.
If you were an engineer, advanced first aid or above, then there is a high likely hood of understanding the forces involved.
If you failed science then you could miss the mechanics of injury signs
 
matthewgcole said:
I respect the pair of you for your honesty. I find it worrying though that perhaps they're educating younger generations differently. Just out of interest, what would scare you about it?

Sent from my D6603 using Tapatalk
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Speaking for myself only, I alway have hated talking on the phone (to anyone). Hard to explain, but I'd be scared of being wrong about something. Maybe your right that were being educated about it differently, but it seems that lots of people I know are just scared of calling.

Off topic, but I feel it's relevant. It wasn't anything to do with me, but I know the people involved. A few months ago, a girl got hit by a car outside my school. someone (someone else in the school) saw it. Instead of calling for an ambulance, they ran into school and told the first teacher they saw, who called the nurse, who called an ambulance. In this case, it helped a lot. The car driver had already called an ambulance, and the teachers being told meant that first aid trained staff could get their quickly.
 
Regarding the car crash speed figure, I've written a short (and very poorly done) python script to calculate train speed/weight or car speed/weight for whatever variables you want to give it. If anyone knows the mass of the infinity trains (ish) and the mass of your average family car I'd be able to tell you if their 90mph was close.

I'm not trying to take away from the fact that this was an awful incident, brought home even more with the CCTV and the other crash footage (particularly the sound of impact).
 
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I think some of the talk around the 999 call (or lack of it for 18 mins) is a bit misguided...

A call to the emergency services saying a rollercoaster has crashed really doesn't help at all. What the emergency services needs to know is exactly what has happened, how many hurt, what type of injuries and what services are required to get to people and to get them cut out an so and so on and so on...

In any disaster such as this the first paramedic on scene becomes the first responder and is responsible for detailing all this for the control centre, before the treat anyone. Now in the case of Alton Towers they have onsite professionals with the capability of doing this. Given it took them 10 mins to get to the site, it doesn't amaze me at all that it took an additional 8 mins to fully asses what was required and get this information prepared and sent out to the emergency services. Keep in mind that during this time they weren't stood around with their fingers up their arses. They would of been working out how the hell they get to them and started to build the structure to get to them.

Could it have been a few mins quicker ? I think if it could of been it would of been personally.... Remember the AT onsite crew are highly trained professionals. Not a couple of first aid lackies.
 
Thing I dont understand with regards the 999 call is that you had ride staff at the entrance. They would have heard the impact and were stood right next to the people screaming for help on the ride. Why didnt they (a) call the ride op and tell them to contact the emergency services or (b) ring 999 themselves from mobiles they would have had in their pockets.

My guess is that staff have a set procedure to follow and only medical staff/responders can call 999.
 
On the public phoning 999. I wouldn't of done. I would of presumed AT had a system for contacting the emergency services.

I also don't think filming the aftermatch is all that bad. Evidence of what had happened is vital for the prosecution and compensation and so on. Selling it to the papers, well that makes you a massive *&*(&(*^
 
I've seen many minor accidents where two cars have minor bumps on the highway only for the Ambulance, fire brigade and police to be called out as a precautionary measure. Calling 999 intermediately after an incident like this should have been a priority, even as a precautionary measure, whether that they are required or not.
 
GaryH said:
Thing I dont understand with regards the 999 call is that you had ride staff at the entrance. They would have heard the impact and were stood right next to the people screaming for help on the ride. Why didnt they (a) call the ride op and tell them to contact the emergency services or (b) ring 999 themselves from mobiles they would have had in their pockets.

My guess is that staff have a set procedure to follow and only medical staff/responders can call 999.
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Its not a guess. Its a fact. The procedure would be to contact the onsite medical team.
 
RoyJess said:
I've seen many minor accidents where two cars have minor bumps on the highway only for the Ambulance, fire brigade and police to be called out as a precautionary measure. Calling 999 intermediately after an incident like this should have been a priority, even as a precautionary measure, whether that they are required or not.
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But not every car has a medical team next to them on stand by... AT have such a team.
 
DiogoJ42 said:
I think based on this, in future we should ALL call 999 ASAP when something happens, nomatter how much we may think "someone else will do it".
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It wouldn't helped... What makes you think it would of helped ?

In the end no one died... The girls would of still lost their legs...
 
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