How Common Are Amusement Park Injuries?

Amusement parks offer days full of entertainment for families and anyone else who enjoys embracing their inner child. Even though you’re focused on having a good time, injuries can happen quickly. Inspections are in place to keep people safe, but that doesn’t always go as planned.

Back in 2017, a properly inspected ride at the Ohio State Fair malfunctioned. One person was killed, and seven others were injured in this particular incident. Nobody could have predicted what would happen, not even professional ride inspectors whose main concern is safety. Whether you go to small carnivals, huge corporate amusement parks, or trendy trampoline parks, you should consider the safety of any ride or activity before participating.

How Often Does This Happen?

The summer months bring plenty of injuries because kids are out of school and more people go outside for activities. You might not realize it, but amusement park injuries are fairly common. In 2016, amusement parks caused around 30,000 injuries, as stated in an article by the Cable News Network (CNN). According to a different CNN article, almost 5,000 of those injured are children.

Most injuries are not serious, but they can still be very painful and take a long time to heal. Some of the injuries that can be caused by amusement park rides are:

• Neck injuries
• Head injuries
• Broken bones
• Soft tissue injuries

Regulations by state are in place to attempt to maintain safety for rides. According to Saferparks, an organization that promotes safe use of amusement rides, not all states have regulations for safety inspections of the rides. Most states require rides to be registered and insured, but not all. Kentucky requires a government inspection at least annually as well as registration and a license. This increases the safety of rides in our state, but accidents can still happen, so ride at your own risk.

Safety Practices at Amusement Parks

Rides at amusement parks can provide fun for the whole family, but safety should always stay your top priority. When you’re about to ride an amusement park ride, you should keep these precautions in mind:

• Follow regulations for height, weight, and health for every ride
• Only get on the ride when instructed and follow seating warnings
• Use seatbelts and safety bars and have attendant check for safety
• Keep hands and feet inside the ride and sit upright
• Trust your gut if you think the ride might be unsafe

If you’re already strapped into the ride, you might feel like an annoyance for asking to get out because you feel unsafe. But you should trust how you feel and ask to get off the ride. You never know what could happen if you don’t.

If you or your child have been injured at an amusement park, your case will probably be against a big company. That can be stressful because big corporations make it harder to win, but not completely impossible. If the amusement park’s negligence was the cause of your injury, then you can get the justice you deserve. Contact Thomas Law Offices today so that we can discuss your potential case.