The investigation into the death of a 6-year-old Colorado girl who fell from a theme park ride has revealed that operators failed to check that the girl was wearing a restraint device.
Ride operators failed to check that the girl, 6, was wearing a seatbelt before she fell from the ride
Wongel Estifanos plunged 100 feet to her death from the Haunted Mine Drop ride at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park on Labor Day weekend, Sept. 5.
Colorado Department of Labor and Employment investigators discovered that the girl was sitting on the two seat belts instead of wearing them crossed, and that two newly hired operators failed to notice during a routine check.
Investigators also discovered that an alarm system warned that Wongel was not properly restrained, but one of the workers reset the system and started the ride because they were not sufficiently trained to know what to do about it.
Prosecutors will now determine whether to file criminal charges.
Dan Caplis, an attorney representing the Estifanos family, said the investigation report shows that “this could have easily been avoided.”
He commented that the family plans to sue the park and is determined to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
“The report makes it clear that the fault lies with the park, not the rider,” Caplis added.
“The park was fully responsible for making sure everyone was restrained. This is not one of those rides where the rider is responsible for everything, including buckling up.
The park is supposed to do all of that.”
Park founder Steve Beckley told the Denver Post that “safety is, and always has been, our top priority.”
Beckley noted that management was reviewing the report’s recommendations, adding that more than 10 million people had safely enjoyed the park’s attractions since it opened 15 years ago.
