Monday, May 31, 1999
Amusement parks safe, reports show
The Associated Press
TOLEDO, Ohio — People going to Ohio's three largest amusement parks for a good time are almost certain to have a safe time as well, according to inspection reports of the parks.
A review of the reports by state Agriculture Department inspectors found no serious infractions on rides at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Paramount's Kings Island in Mason and Geauga Lake in Aurora, The Blade reported Sunday.
Six ride-related injuries requiring hospitalization have been filed since 1996:
• At Kings Island, a girl suffered a genital injury on a water slide. At Geauga Lake, one child struck his head in a wave pool and another was injured when he tried to leap from one car to another on a ride.
• At Cedar Point, a woman was injured getting off a carousel ride, a man hit his head in a pool when he fell off an inner tube at a water park and a child broke her arm while running in a play area.
The parks had about 8 million visitors last year — 3.5 million at Cedar Point, 3.4 million at Kings Island and 1.3 million at Geauga Lake.
John Dodson is one of eight state inspectors who cover the three parks. He said other injuries undoubtedly occur on rides, but only those requiring hospitalization must be reported.
The parks allow state inspectors to review all such injuries, but requests by The Blade to see reports on injuries not requiring hospitalization were turned down by officials of all three parks.
“There's nothing there that we would care to hide from anybody. It's just that they are internal private documents,” said Ron Fussner, loss prevention director for Cedar Point. “About 99.9 per cent of those things are minor situations.”
Ohio and about 15 other states have strong laws requiring regular ride inspections, but only Ohio and Florida have full-time inspectors checking and licensing each ride.
Inspections are done three to four weeks before the parks' season opens in May and a few weeks before the season ends in September.
Spring inspections begin with bigger rides, usually roller coasters.
“It may take us a week or more just to do the coasters,” Mr. Dodson said.
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