Six Hospitalized After Roller Coaster Crashes in Daytona

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on June 18, 2018

Visitors to the Daytona Beach Boardwalk on Thursday, June 14th, experienced a tremendous shock when something happened to one of the most popular roller coasters in the area that caused a car to jump the tracks and badly injure several passengers as well as forcing emergency rescue crews to use numerous ladders in order to rescue numerous stranded people. According to the Daytona Beach Fire Department, the incident happened at close to 8:30 in the evening, during the time when hundreds—if not thousands—of people were enjoying the balmy ocean breezes as well as the thrill of the various rides at the park.

The roller coaster in question is a 40-year-old ride called the Sand Blaster. Previously located in Delaware, the ride had been purchased by the Daytona Beach Boardwalk in 2012 and, after performing numerous repairs on the ride, the park opened it for the 2013 season. The highest point of the ride takes passenger to an 85 foot high summit, and the entire course runs to around one half-mile of track.

It appears that the incident this past Thursday happened only hours after the coaster had experienced a state inspection saying that everything was up to order and the ride was fully usable. A statement from the Florida Agriculture Commissioner, Adam Putnam, indicated that the inspectors from his department had fully gone over the machine and deemed it completely within the perimeters set by the state.

The ride began normally enough, but as it reached a section of track that stands 30 feet above the ground something happened to cause one of the cars to jump completely off of the track. Two other cars were then trapped behind the first, which was now dangling in the air. From the first car, two of the passengers were not able to hang on long enough for rescue teams to reach them, and they fell from the vehicle to the ground. The full extent of their injuries is not known.

Four other passengers—making for six out of the ten who were aboard the Sand Blaster during the incident—were also hospitalized. The extent of their injuries is also unknown.

An investigation into the incident is currently underway.

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.