Alton Towers was under fire last night after four thrillseekers were seriously hurt on a rollercoaster with a history of problems.
The victims – three of them teenagers – were crushed after their carriage ploughed into an empty cart on the £18million Smiler ride, which has more loops than any other rollercoaster in the world, yesterday afternoon.
One is thought to have lost a leg, a staff source said.
It took five hours to cut all the passengers free from the wreckage and two were pictured hanging 25ft upside down.
Witnesses described hearing an ‘almighty bang’ before seeing ‘blood everywhere’.
The 53mph rollercoaster has been dogged with faults since it opened two years ago and had broken down earlier in the day.
The empty cart was on the track for a test run and had halted when it was hit from behind by a car packed with 16 visitors.
Parkgoers spoke last night of their anger that the ride, which has a world record 14 loops, was operating after a series of faults.
Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire opened in 1980 in the grounds of the stately home of the same name - a former seat of the Earl of Shrewsbury - and is the most visited theme park in the UK and the ninth most visited in the world.
'There was blood everywhere': Victim loses a LEG in Alton Towers horror crash - but why was ride still running despite history of faults?
Victims crushed after carriage ploughed into empty cart on £18m Smiler
It took five hours to cut passengers free from wreckage in Staffordshire
53mph rollercoaster dogged with faults since it opened two years ago
Visitors angry at how ride with 14 loops was still operating after faults
By Andy Dolan and Jaya Narain for the Daily Mail and Richard Spillett and Emma Glanfield and Mark Duell for MailOnline
3 June 2015
Daily Mail
Horror on the rollercoaster: Passengers, some unconscious and covered in blood, dangle 25ft above the ground after the crash on the Smiler ride yesterday
Rescue on the Smiler: One witness said passengers were 'screaming and people nearby were running over'
On the scene: Rescue efforts were made to get to those trapped on the two-year-old ride at Alton Towers
Rescuers: The accident involved a moving carriage with 16 passengers and an empty, stationary carriage
Parkgoer films the aftermath of the collision:
Witnesses described hearing an ‘almighty bang’ before seeing ‘blood everywhere’.
The 53mph rollercoaster has been dogged with faults since it opened two years ago and had broken down earlier in the day.
The empty cart was on the track for a test run and had halted when it was hit from behind by a car packed with 16 visitors.
Parkgoers spoke last night of their anger that the ride, which has a world record 14 loops, was operating after a series of faults.
From above: An aerial view of the scene as emergency services work to rescue passengers at Alton Towers
A photo taken by a witness shows one of those trapped on board the huge rollercoaster yesterday
Firefighters on the scene: West Midlands Ambulance Service said four people were seriously injured
Help on its way: TV helicopter footage showed rescue crews removing those stuck on the rollercoaster
Scary: Passengers were seen being loaded onto stretchers as they hung at 45 degrees to the ground, 25ft up
Aid: Staff at the Alton Towers park constructed a platform to help emergency workers evacuate those trapped
Josh Pilling, 20, said: ‘There had been all sorts of problems with the ride. It kept stopping and starting and people were getting sick of waiting.
‘Then suddenly they sent out a carriage full of people and it stopped halfway up a loop.
‘Suddenly it started again and went headlong into the stationary carriage at the bottom with an ear-splitting crunch.
‘People were screaming and crying. They should have shut it down and got engineers in. I’m just shocked it could happen.
‘Anyone with a pair of eyes would have known not to let the carriage with people head down the loop when there was clearly an obstruction.’
Thomas Healy, 26, a business manager at McDonald’s, said he thought the full carriage was about to be evacuated when it stopped.
But he added: ‘Suddenly the carriage moved – almost as though staff hit the wrong button – and it went down the loop and then smashed into the empty carriage.
‘It was horrendous. The impact was massive and the people at the front looked unconscious for a bit.
‘The carriage was crushed at the front and they must have suffered leg injuries.
'There was one guy whose head was covered in blood.’
Working together: Emergency services at Alton Towers in Staffordshire after carriages on the ride crashed
Rescuers: A fire service rope access team works at Alton Towers after four people were seriously injured
Pictures of those trapped on board were posted on Twitter, with witnesses reporting some were unconscious
Witnesses said the empty carriage was sent out to test the ride but stopped on the track before another carriage with people in it smashed into the back of it
Another witness, Olivia Marston, said: ‘The bang was horrendous. Absolutely horrific. Everyone crowded round the area and there were lots of screams.’
THE WORLD'S FIRST 14-LOOP ROLLERCOASTER: THE SMILER
The £18million Smiler ride opened in May 2013 and is billed as the world's first 14-loop rollercoaster.
It holds the official Guinness World Record for the most loops in a rollercoaster, according to Alton Towers.
It measure more than 3,838 feet in length and can carry a total of 80 passengers when it is operating at full capacity.
Staff said the ride operates up to five carriages – each containing 16 passengers – at any one time, with the number of carriages running depending on how busy the park is. There were two carriages – one full and one empty – at the time of the crash.
The ride features vertical drops of up to 100ft, a ride time of 165 seconds and a track length three times the length of the resort's famous Oblivion ride.
Alton Towers claims that the ride 'provides an experience like no other' and 'will marmalise your body and mind, combining intense physical effects from plunging drops and extreme turns with twisted psychological effects.'
It is billed as 'not for the faint hearted' and features 'a series of twisted psychological effects including optical illusions, blinding lights and near misses designed to mess with your mind.'
On-board perspective of the record-breaking Smiler rollercoaster:
Four air ambulances with trauma doctors were sent to the Staffordshire theme park and a platform was built alongside the crash site to help paramedics reach the injured.
West Midlands Ambulance Service said the most seriously hurt riders were a boy of 18, a man of 27 and their girlfriends, aged 17 and 19. The 12 others suffered minor injuries.
Staffordshire Fire and Rescue sent four pumps, a rope rescue team and an aerial ladder platform.
The resort will be closed today while investigations continue, according to a spokesman. A management source said the ride might be shut for good.
Ian Crabbe, a divisional director for Alton Towers, said staff were devastated.
He said a full investigation was underway and officials from the Health and Safety Executive were on site.
Questioned about earlier technical issues, Mr Crabbe replied: ‘I don’t know the details of that but it will form part of our investigation, as will the possibility of human error.
‘I have been here for six years and this is the most serious incident in that time.
‘I’d say it was the most serious in the history of Alton Towers.
'Our major concern is with those injured. This ride has had its issues but that’s normal for rollercoasters.
‘I don’t think it would be fair to reflect on those issues and say they are connected – I don’t think they are.’
The park remained open following the 2pm collision.
Some visitors to the theme park claimed on Twitter that the ride had broken down earlier in the day
Staffordshire theme park: Merlin Entertainments - owner of Alton Towers (above) - saw its shares drop more than 3 per cent - down 15.9p to 444.3p - after the crash
Visitors to the park tweeted telling of their shock after seeing people trapped on board the ride
Marcus Gaines, of the European Coaster Club, said rides had automatic braking systems to ensure carriages stayed safe in separate sectors of the track.
He added: ‘For whatever reason, we have ended up with the computer system not realising that a train has stopped on the track, and it has not held the car in its own sector, allowing a collision to take place.
‘I can’t think of the last time something like that happened in the UK.
Up in the air: A Midlands Air Ambulance leaves Alton Towers after the incident on the ride carrying 16 people
Four air ambulances with a trauma doctor on board flew to the scene to help those who were injured
'You are twice as likely to get struck by lightning as be injured on a rollercoaster.’
Steve Wheaton, assistant chief officer for West Midlands Ambulance Service, said: ‘Of the 16 patients involved I can confirm four of them have significant lower limb injuries and were trapped in the carriage for quite some time.
‘Of the other 12 patients we now believe they will be walking wounded patients and the delay has just been in extricating them from the car.
‘Of the four critically injured with lower limb injuries two of them have gone to the Royal Stoke University Hospital and two of them have gone to the University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire trauma centres.’
The resort’s parent company, Merlin Entertainment, saw more than £160million wiped from its stock market value on news of the incident.
Based in Poole, Dorset, it has run Alton Towers since buying out the Tussauds Group in May 2007.
It is the world’s second-largest visitor attraction operator behind Disney and runs 105 sites, 11 hotels and three holiday villages in 23 countries.
Alton Towers boasts the Smiler has a ‘series of twisted psychological effects including optical illusions, blinding lights and near misses designed to mess with your mind’.
It lasts two minutes and 45 seconds and has drops of 98ft.
During a press launch shortly before it opened, 16 journalists had to be rescued when the ride broke down.
Another incident saw riders injured by falling wheels.
In a statement last night, Nick Varney, chief executive of Merlin Entertainments, said: ‘This has been a terrible incident and a devastating day for everyone here.
‘I would like to express my sincerest regret and apology to everyone who suffered injury and distress today and to their families.
‘The safety of our visitors is our primary concern. The park will remain closed until we understand better the cause of this dreadful incident.
‘I would like to thank the emergency services for their swift and effective response.’
SEVEN INCIDENTS ON THE SMILER BEFORE YESTERDAY'S CRASH
The £18million ride has experienced numerous issues since it opened in May 2013, becoming the world’s first 14-loop rollercoaster.
May 31, 2013: Ahead of its official opening in May 2013, the ride experience a malfunction during an event for press and celebrities. The full carriage became stuck on the first vertical incline on the ride and passengers had to stay in their seats for an hour until they could be evacuated. Riders included the likes of rapper Tinchy Stryder and The Only Way Is Essex star Jessica Wright.
June 4, 2013: Just four days later, one carriage stalled during a test run before the ride was officially unveiled to the public.
June 10, 2013: The ride was then opened, but just a few days later the ride faced further problems and stalled on a batwing element.
Staff knew the ride was experiencing difficulties and so the carriage was empty at the time, except for weighted dummies. The cause of the incident was revealed as a computer malfunction which triggered the brakes.
July 21, 2013: Just over a month later, 48 people had to be evacuated from the ride after a piece of equipment fell off the ride. There were reports that the piece of equipment was a 1ft-long metal bar, and a small gap in the track reportedly appeared as a result. The ride closed for four days following the incident.
July 30, 2013: The ride was closed for a further five days while cracks discovered around the ride’s support structure were filled.
November 2, 2013: Four people riding in the front of a carriage were injured after they were hit by plastic wheels which detached as the train attempted a vertical incline. At the time, a spokesman said some 'small guide wheels' came off the ride, hitting father Kevin Hayes-Heath, his partner Wayne, a teenager girl and her father. Mr Hayes-Heath described the incident as 'pretty frightening'.
April 2014: Riders were left dangling 100ft above ground after a carriage on the ride got stuck on a vertical peak. The ride ground to a halt at the top of a near vertical section leaving more than 12 people stranded. At the time, one witness said: ‘There were people screaming. It must have been a terrifying ordeal for the passengers in the carriage.’
Sixteen people were involved in a collision between two carriages on Alton Towers' Smiler ride (file photo)
The rollercoaster, which cost £18million, travels at speeds of up to 53mph and its highest drop is 93ft
The victims – three of them teenagers – were crushed after their carriage ploughed into an empty cart on the £18million Smiler ride, which has more loops than any other rollercoaster in the world, yesterday afternoon.
One is thought to have lost a leg, a staff source said.
It took five hours to cut all the passengers free from the wreckage and two were pictured hanging 25ft upside down.
Witnesses described hearing an ‘almighty bang’ before seeing ‘blood everywhere’.
The 53mph rollercoaster has been dogged with faults since it opened two years ago and had broken down earlier in the day.
The empty cart was on the track for a test run and had halted when it was hit from behind by a car packed with 16 visitors.
Parkgoers spoke last night of their anger that the ride, which has a world record 14 loops, was operating after a series of faults.
Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire opened in 1980 in the grounds of the stately home of the same name - a former seat of the Earl of Shrewsbury - and is the most visited theme park in the UK and the ninth most visited in the world.
'There was blood everywhere': Victim loses a LEG in Alton Towers horror crash - but why was ride still running despite history of faults?
Victims crushed after carriage ploughed into empty cart on £18m Smiler
It took five hours to cut passengers free from wreckage in Staffordshire
53mph rollercoaster dogged with faults since it opened two years ago
Visitors angry at how ride with 14 loops was still operating after faults
By Andy Dolan and Jaya Narain for the Daily Mail and Richard Spillett and Emma Glanfield and Mark Duell for MailOnline
3 June 2015
Daily Mail
Horror on the rollercoaster: Passengers, some unconscious and covered in blood, dangle 25ft above the ground after the crash on the Smiler ride yesterday
Rescue on the Smiler: One witness said passengers were 'screaming and people nearby were running over'
On the scene: Rescue efforts were made to get to those trapped on the two-year-old ride at Alton Towers
Rescuers: The accident involved a moving carriage with 16 passengers and an empty, stationary carriage
Parkgoer films the aftermath of the collision:
Witnesses described hearing an ‘almighty bang’ before seeing ‘blood everywhere’.
The 53mph rollercoaster has been dogged with faults since it opened two years ago and had broken down earlier in the day.
The empty cart was on the track for a test run and had halted when it was hit from behind by a car packed with 16 visitors.
Parkgoers spoke last night of their anger that the ride, which has a world record 14 loops, was operating after a series of faults.
From above: An aerial view of the scene as emergency services work to rescue passengers at Alton Towers
A photo taken by a witness shows one of those trapped on board the huge rollercoaster yesterday
Firefighters on the scene: West Midlands Ambulance Service said four people were seriously injured
Help on its way: TV helicopter footage showed rescue crews removing those stuck on the rollercoaster
Scary: Passengers were seen being loaded onto stretchers as they hung at 45 degrees to the ground, 25ft up
Aid: Staff at the Alton Towers park constructed a platform to help emergency workers evacuate those trapped
Josh Pilling, 20, said: ‘There had been all sorts of problems with the ride. It kept stopping and starting and people were getting sick of waiting.
‘Then suddenly they sent out a carriage full of people and it stopped halfway up a loop.
‘Suddenly it started again and went headlong into the stationary carriage at the bottom with an ear-splitting crunch.
‘People were screaming and crying. They should have shut it down and got engineers in. I’m just shocked it could happen.
‘Anyone with a pair of eyes would have known not to let the carriage with people head down the loop when there was clearly an obstruction.’
Thomas Healy, 26, a business manager at McDonald’s, said he thought the full carriage was about to be evacuated when it stopped.
But he added: ‘Suddenly the carriage moved – almost as though staff hit the wrong button – and it went down the loop and then smashed into the empty carriage.
‘It was horrendous. The impact was massive and the people at the front looked unconscious for a bit.
‘The carriage was crushed at the front and they must have suffered leg injuries.
'There was one guy whose head was covered in blood.’
Working together: Emergency services at Alton Towers in Staffordshire after carriages on the ride crashed
Rescuers: A fire service rope access team works at Alton Towers after four people were seriously injured
Pictures of those trapped on board were posted on Twitter, with witnesses reporting some were unconscious
Witnesses said the empty carriage was sent out to test the ride but stopped on the track before another carriage with people in it smashed into the back of it
Another witness, Olivia Marston, said: ‘The bang was horrendous. Absolutely horrific. Everyone crowded round the area and there were lots of screams.’
THE WORLD'S FIRST 14-LOOP ROLLERCOASTER: THE SMILER
The £18million Smiler ride opened in May 2013 and is billed as the world's first 14-loop rollercoaster.
It holds the official Guinness World Record for the most loops in a rollercoaster, according to Alton Towers.
It measure more than 3,838 feet in length and can carry a total of 80 passengers when it is operating at full capacity.
Staff said the ride operates up to five carriages – each containing 16 passengers – at any one time, with the number of carriages running depending on how busy the park is. There were two carriages – one full and one empty – at the time of the crash.
The ride features vertical drops of up to 100ft, a ride time of 165 seconds and a track length three times the length of the resort's famous Oblivion ride.
Alton Towers claims that the ride 'provides an experience like no other' and 'will marmalise your body and mind, combining intense physical effects from plunging drops and extreme turns with twisted psychological effects.'
It is billed as 'not for the faint hearted' and features 'a series of twisted psychological effects including optical illusions, blinding lights and near misses designed to mess with your mind.'
On-board perspective of the record-breaking Smiler rollercoaster:
Four air ambulances with trauma doctors were sent to the Staffordshire theme park and a platform was built alongside the crash site to help paramedics reach the injured.
West Midlands Ambulance Service said the most seriously hurt riders were a boy of 18, a man of 27 and their girlfriends, aged 17 and 19. The 12 others suffered minor injuries.
Staffordshire Fire and Rescue sent four pumps, a rope rescue team and an aerial ladder platform.
The resort will be closed today while investigations continue, according to a spokesman. A management source said the ride might be shut for good.
Ian Crabbe, a divisional director for Alton Towers, said staff were devastated.
He said a full investigation was underway and officials from the Health and Safety Executive were on site.
Questioned about earlier technical issues, Mr Crabbe replied: ‘I don’t know the details of that but it will form part of our investigation, as will the possibility of human error.
‘I have been here for six years and this is the most serious incident in that time.
‘I’d say it was the most serious in the history of Alton Towers.
'Our major concern is with those injured. This ride has had its issues but that’s normal for rollercoasters.
‘I don’t think it would be fair to reflect on those issues and say they are connected – I don’t think they are.’
The park remained open following the 2pm collision.
Some visitors to the theme park claimed on Twitter that the ride had broken down earlier in the day
Staffordshire theme park: Merlin Entertainments - owner of Alton Towers (above) - saw its shares drop more than 3 per cent - down 15.9p to 444.3p - after the crash
Visitors to the park tweeted telling of their shock after seeing people trapped on board the ride
Marcus Gaines, of the European Coaster Club, said rides had automatic braking systems to ensure carriages stayed safe in separate sectors of the track.
He added: ‘For whatever reason, we have ended up with the computer system not realising that a train has stopped on the track, and it has not held the car in its own sector, allowing a collision to take place.
‘I can’t think of the last time something like that happened in the UK.
Up in the air: A Midlands Air Ambulance leaves Alton Towers after the incident on the ride carrying 16 people
Four air ambulances with a trauma doctor on board flew to the scene to help those who were injured
'You are twice as likely to get struck by lightning as be injured on a rollercoaster.’
Steve Wheaton, assistant chief officer for West Midlands Ambulance Service, said: ‘Of the 16 patients involved I can confirm four of them have significant lower limb injuries and were trapped in the carriage for quite some time.
‘Of the other 12 patients we now believe they will be walking wounded patients and the delay has just been in extricating them from the car.
‘Of the four critically injured with lower limb injuries two of them have gone to the Royal Stoke University Hospital and two of them have gone to the University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire trauma centres.’
The resort’s parent company, Merlin Entertainment, saw more than £160million wiped from its stock market value on news of the incident.
Based in Poole, Dorset, it has run Alton Towers since buying out the Tussauds Group in May 2007.
It is the world’s second-largest visitor attraction operator behind Disney and runs 105 sites, 11 hotels and three holiday villages in 23 countries.
Alton Towers boasts the Smiler has a ‘series of twisted psychological effects including optical illusions, blinding lights and near misses designed to mess with your mind’.
It lasts two minutes and 45 seconds and has drops of 98ft.
During a press launch shortly before it opened, 16 journalists had to be rescued when the ride broke down.
Another incident saw riders injured by falling wheels.
In a statement last night, Nick Varney, chief executive of Merlin Entertainments, said: ‘This has been a terrible incident and a devastating day for everyone here.
‘I would like to express my sincerest regret and apology to everyone who suffered injury and distress today and to their families.
‘The safety of our visitors is our primary concern. The park will remain closed until we understand better the cause of this dreadful incident.
‘I would like to thank the emergency services for their swift and effective response.’
SEVEN INCIDENTS ON THE SMILER BEFORE YESTERDAY'S CRASH
The £18million ride has experienced numerous issues since it opened in May 2013, becoming the world’s first 14-loop rollercoaster.
May 31, 2013: Ahead of its official opening in May 2013, the ride experience a malfunction during an event for press and celebrities. The full carriage became stuck on the first vertical incline on the ride and passengers had to stay in their seats for an hour until they could be evacuated. Riders included the likes of rapper Tinchy Stryder and The Only Way Is Essex star Jessica Wright.
June 4, 2013: Just four days later, one carriage stalled during a test run before the ride was officially unveiled to the public.
June 10, 2013: The ride was then opened, but just a few days later the ride faced further problems and stalled on a batwing element.
Staff knew the ride was experiencing difficulties and so the carriage was empty at the time, except for weighted dummies. The cause of the incident was revealed as a computer malfunction which triggered the brakes.
July 21, 2013: Just over a month later, 48 people had to be evacuated from the ride after a piece of equipment fell off the ride. There were reports that the piece of equipment was a 1ft-long metal bar, and a small gap in the track reportedly appeared as a result. The ride closed for four days following the incident.
July 30, 2013: The ride was closed for a further five days while cracks discovered around the ride’s support structure were filled.
November 2, 2013: Four people riding in the front of a carriage were injured after they were hit by plastic wheels which detached as the train attempted a vertical incline. At the time, a spokesman said some 'small guide wheels' came off the ride, hitting father Kevin Hayes-Heath, his partner Wayne, a teenager girl and her father. Mr Hayes-Heath described the incident as 'pretty frightening'.
April 2014: Riders were left dangling 100ft above ground after a carriage on the ride got stuck on a vertical peak. The ride ground to a halt at the top of a near vertical section leaving more than 12 people stranded. At the time, one witness said: ‘There were people screaming. It must have been a terrifying ordeal for the passengers in the carriage.’
Sixteen people were involved in a collision between two carriages on Alton Towers' Smiler ride (file photo)
The rollercoaster, which cost £18million, travels at speeds of up to 53mph and its highest drop is 93ft
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