Woman Dies on Texas Giant Ride at 6 Flags * Update

[rapeWhistle]

Originally Posted by diamondsmiles

A 28-year-old woman died and 10 other people were injured on the Roaring Rapids ride at Six Flags Over Texas in 1999 when their raft overturned in two to three feet of water. The woman was trapped in the ride and drowned.

Roaring Rapids was fun as fuck!
I remember going on it a few times when i was a kid.

[DiamondSmiles]

Originally Posted by Darkest Angel

If she was too big to click in properly, surely they would not allow her to ride. U would think anyway.

You would think, but, people don't give a shit about anyone or anything anymore

If there was a weight limit, the operator should have told her and asked if she still wanted to ride at her own risk.

I added a video with a witness who knew the seatbelt didn't click three times like everyone else's. It clicked one time.

[rapeWhistle]

Fuck her

Fat old bitch would've sued the park; and gotten a good out-of-court settlement, to keep her quiet for 'discrimination' if they would've told her she couldn't ride. I wouldn't even want to own or run a business that has to cater to the public these days, it would be a nightmare having to deal with people on a daily basis.

Fuck her family too, if they cared so much about her precious life they wouldn't have let her get morbidly obese!

[DiamondSmiles]

Originally Posted by kellyhound

i smell a giant lawsuit coming up.

You got it!

http://abcnews.go.com/US/family-sues...ry?id=20231931

U.S. Family Sues Six Flags After Woman's Fall From 14-Story High Roller Coaster

September 12, 2013

By RYAN OWENS

The family of a 52-year-old Dallas woman has filed a lawsuit against Six Flags Over Texas two months after the woman was thrown from the seat of her roller coaster and fell 75 feet to her death.

Rosa Esparza was killed July 19 when she fell off the Texas Giant, a 14-story roller coaster that twists and turns at more than 60 miles per hour at the amusement park in Arlington.

The lawsuit, which accuses Six Flags of negligence, was filed on Tuesday, the same day Six Flags announced the roller coaster will reopen this weekend.

Esparza, according to the suit, was in the front, left seat of the second car in the roller coaster chain when the ride began. Her son-in-law and daughter were in the front seat, and according to the lawsuit, they saw Esparza, "attempting to hold on for dear life."

Frank Branson, the family's attorney, told ABC News Esparza's daughter heard her mother's screams for help.

"She heard screams behind her. She turned, as I understand it, to see her mother's feet in the air. She turns back to tell her husband and turns around again and her mother was gone," Branson said.

The T-shaped lap bar that was supposed to restrain riders didn't work properly, according to the suit. The lawsuit states that inspections done on the roller coasters after Esparza's death "showed that various parts of the security systems on the ride were experiencing inconsistencies and intermittent failures."

After the incident, Six Flags replaced a, "limit switch," an indicator that shows the safety bar is in place, in the car Esparza was riding in because amusement park staff, "found the switch to be defective," according to the lawsuit.

Esparza's family has requested a trial by jury and is seeking compensation of at least $1 million.

Six Flags declined to comment on the lawsuit and has never said what exactly happened the day Esparza plunged to her death, but insisted there was "no mechanical failures."

Esparza was 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighed more than 200 pounds, but the family's attorney says it's still not clear whether the safety bar locked or if the bar wasn't properly designed to, "hold in," someone her size.

Six Flags has announced that when the Texas Giant reopens, the ride will be equipped with new seat belts and redesigned restraint bar pads. The amusement park will also offer a sample roller coaster seat at the ride's entrance for people to judge for themselves in advance whether they fit safely.

[Megamel29]

I would hate to drop dead in a freak accident and have everyone talking about my fat ass. What a way to go.

[253bumper]

dats pretty fucked up

[HairyGrape]

Originally Posted by 253bumper

dats pretty fucked up

U kno dis!

[TheCapn]

Aren't a lot of people obese in Texas though? So refusing obese people the rides would mean nobody went on it..

[DiamondSmiles]

http://www.nbcdfw.com/templates/nbc_...lite&rand=2950

Two Months after fatal fall, Texas Giant ride re-opens with new safety measures

By Chris Van Horne, NBCDFW.com

The Texas Giant is back open at Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington, two months after a woman fell to her death while on the wooden roller coaster.

On the night of July 29, Rosa Esparza, 52, fell from a cart as it took a sharp turn. Her family recently filed a lawsuit against Six Flags alleging the park ignored dangers. They're asking for at least $1 million in damages.

But on Saturday, the ride re-opened with new safety improvements which regular riders say they noticed and say made them feel safer.

Over the last 56 days the park, engineers and its insurance company investigated Esparza's death and made the safety improvements, which the park allowed the media to see first-hand.

Park patrons were excited to have one of the steepest wooden roller coaster's on the planet back open for business.

"Yeah, definitely one my favorite rides, glad they opened it back up today," said Marvin Taylor of Dallas.

"That was the first ride we rode," said Jay Box, of Dallas. "Went in the gates, went straight to the Texas Giant.

For park regulars, there were hardly any reservations about returning to the Texas Giant.

"A little at first, until we got there and saw the extra restraints," Box said, "the seat belt and they had the lap bar a little more concave, so it got snug."

Six Flags won't release the details of its investigation into Esparza's death because her family has filed suit.

But the park said in a press release earlier in the week that they did add the extra lap belt and new restraint bars.

At the park on Saturday, additional warning signs were noticed, warning that a person's, "physical characteristics," may prevent them from riding if the restraint bar wasn't properly in the place.

The park also added a test chair out in front of the ride's entrance. The chair allows patrons to see if they can fit in the chair with the restraint bar in its proper position. Once the bar is in proper place, a buzzer goes off saying they're good to ride the Texas Giant. A rider must also be four fee tall.

"We walked right by it," Taylor said.

Park employees said most people did walk past the chair, but flocked to it when news cameras were present.

But there was no missing another change, the safety checks after riders had boarded and before they left to experience thrills.

"They took extra time in loading every car, to double check, triple check, make sure everything is secure," Taylor said.

"Before it was a lot of kids running the ride, having fun and joking and not taking it serious," Box said. "And this time it felt like it should, it felt safer."

"Yeah, you felt safer, still the same great ride," Taylor said.

Everyone NBC 5 was able to speak with said they felt safer.

Taylor and Box said they did see a woman removed from the ride because the restraints wouldn't get into their proper positions.

In a press released earlier in the week the park's president said safety was the top priority.

"We are heartbroken and will forever feel the pain and sadness of this tragic accident. Our sincerest condolences go out to the family and friends of Ms. Esparza," said Steve Martindale, park president of Six Flags Over Texas.

"The safety of our guests and employees is our company's absolute highest priority and we try to take every reasonable precaution to eliminate the risk of accidents."
.

[DiamondSmiles]

March 7, 2014

The German manufacturer of the Texas Giant at Six Flags over Texas is blasting the amusement park.

In a cross-complaint filed in the case involving the death of a Dallas woman, Gerstlauer Amusement Rides said the park is solely to blame for the accident.

On July 19th, Rosy Esparza got on the Texas Giant and soon after plummeted to her death.

In the new court document, Gerstlauer said, "Six Flags failed to exercise reasonable care in their hiring, training and supervision of the ride operators... on the date of the accident."

Specifically adding, “…by not activating the Emergency Stop button at their fingertips when a Six Flags employee observed... Esparza's lap bar was, 'too high,' as the train left…"

Attorney, Frank Branson, representing the Esparza family, said interviews with employees show that one of the workers operating the ride, “had a button that could have stopped and should have stopped the ride,” but that button was not pressed.

The German maker also said Six Flags had a hand in designing the ride. Six Flags has blamed the death on a dangerous, defective ride.

Gerstlauer Amusement Rides said the park “expressly designed and specified in writing that there be no seat belts.”

Soon after the accident, seat belts were added, and there was a test seat put out, so people could see if they could safely get on the ride. Gerstlauer Amusement Rides said that seat was provided for the park two years prior to the accident, but never used.

Six Flags over Texas responded to the countersuit.

“The manufacturer assured Six Flags that the Texas Giant, without seat belts, was safe for riders.

As an additional safety measure, when the ride re-opened in September, we added incremental and overlapping safety measures including re-designed restraint bar pads and new seat belts. The safety of our guests is our number one priority,” said Six Flags over Texas spokesperson Sharon Parker.

— NBC Dallas-Fort Worth

The Texas Giant roller coaster at the Six Flags Amusement Park is seen in a 2011 photo.