Common Amusement Park Injuries

Summer is here, and it’s time to hit the amusement parks and fairs — and Florida has lots of them. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission over 8,000 people are injured every year at the nation’s parks and fairs.

This season keep your kids safer by paying close attention to park safety rules guarding against these common park injuries:

• Whiplash – spinning rides and bumper cars can cause injury to the neck and spine during repeated whipping of the head at high speed. Trauma to the ligaments of the neck can also cause stroke.
• Head injury – traumatic brain injury can result from the g-force of rapid speeds or from falling or flying objects.
• Fractures – arms, legs and fingers can be broken by malfunctioning safety bars, by extending limbs outside of ride enclosures and by falling from cars and seats while airborne.
• Aneurism – can result from roller coasters and other high speed rides.
• Drowning and near drowning – water slides and water rides can be dangerous for non-swimmers when pools are crowded and poorly supervised.

Sometimes just being careful is not enough to prevent injury to a child in a park or fair.  If a rider follows all of the safely precautions instructions posted by the park and is injured anyway, the park may be liable for the injury. Most park injuries can be attributed to:

• Mechanical malfunction – Some rides just malfunction. Safety belts open, lap bars open, roller coaster cars can spontaneously detach. The failure can be the fault of the manufacturer or due to the park’s improper maintenance of the ride.

• Improper operation – park employees may fail to operate the ride safely, by neglecting to fasten a seatbelt securely or to instruct passengers to remain seated.

Amusement park rides carry some inherent risks. People with preexisting heart conditions, neck or back injuries should not ride high velocity rides. However, if your child is injured at an amusement park, consult a personal injury attorney. You might be eligible for compensation for medical bills and other expenses. For your free consultation call the Palm Harbor Law Office of Paul B. Genet, P.A. at 727-510-8802 or contact us online.