Child falls off rollercoaster at Idlewild theme park in Pennsylvania. Boy talking and alert. Airlifted to hospital.
A small boy was airlifted to the hospital after reports said he fell from a rollercoaster at Idlewild and SoakZone Amusement Park in Pennsylvania.
NBC News said the boy is believed to be about 3-years-old. According to NBC, the boy “tumbled” from the roller coaster.
However, the park has only confirmed that the boy was injured on the ride and not how.
The child’s condition is not known, although the child was conscious. The park is located about an hour from Pittsburgh.
The accident comes only days after 10-year-old Caleb Schwab was decapitated on a water slide in Kansas City.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. The Child Was ‘Awake’ & ‘Alert’ After The Accident
Although the child’s condition was not released, an emergency dispatcher described the child as “awake and alert,” according to ABC News.
NBC said the boy was talking to his family after the accident, according to the park spokesman.
The Pittsburgh-Gazette quoted the park spokesman as saying, “He was talking. He was alert with his family, but he was airlifted to a local hospital.”
The report that the boy fell from the roller coaster came from an emergency dispatcher, but, in a statement, the park only said that “a boy riding the Rollo Coaster with his brother was injured while riding the attraction,” according to The Pittsburgh-Gazette.
2. The Child Fell From a Classic Roller Coaster With a Wooden Track Called The ‘Rollo Coaster’
WTAE said the injury was first reported as a fall by emergency dispatchers.
The injury occurred on the Rollo Coaster, an older wooden ride at the park, WTAE said.
The park website says the Rollo Coaster “trains carry riders up and down along a wooded hillside then turn around in a swooping curve and return to the station. The Rollo Coaster has been named a Classic Coaster by the American Coaster Enthusiasts.”
NBC News said the park is known for its child-friendly rides, and the Rollo Coaster was built in 1938.
3. The Roller Coaster Was Shut Down, Reports Say
The Rollo Coaster ride at the park. YouTube
Police and county detectives in Ligonier, Pennsylvania, where the park is located, are investigating, and the ride was shut down, says WTAE.
The Pittsburgh-Gazette says the park spokesman told the media in a press conference that the park’s rides are inspected daily.
The park’s website says people must be 36″ tall to ride on the roller coaster, and guests under 48″ must have an adult with them.
4. The Child Was Flown to The Hospital & Was With His Family at The Scene, Reports Say
Officials Investigating Report of Child Falling Off Coaster at Idlewild Park and SoakZone
The boy was airlifted from the park. The park’s website bills itself as the “best kids’ park in the world.”
A medical helicopter was called to the park and flew the boy to a Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, said WPXI. His family was with him at the park, said
The park spokesman wouldn’t say how the accident occurred, but said the incident happened during the middle part of the ride, said KDKA.
5. The Roller Coaster Fall Comes After Injuries to Other Children at Amusement Parks
Caleb Schwab. (Family photo)
Schwab, the son of a Kansas lawmaker, died in an accident on the world’s tallest water slide at Schlitterbahn, a Kansas City water park.
Then, on Aug. 9, a 6-year-old girl “suffered a traumatic brain injury: when she fell 25 to 45 feet from a Ferris Wheel, said ABC.
The Ferris wheel accident occurred when the cabin tipped over at the Greene County Fair in Tennessee. Two other girls, ages 10 and 16, were also injured, said ABC.