Amusement park thrill rides are designed to give riders an experience that feels dangerous, without actually putting them in danger. Unfortunately, accidents do happen, and in the worst cases, they can lead to tragic consequences. Such was the case in 2022 when a 14-year-old boy fell to his death from a drop tower ride.
This week, a jury in Orange County, Florida found in favor of the family of Tyre Sampson, a 14-year-old boy who fell from the FreeFall drop tower attraction at Orlando’s ICON Park in March 2022. The ride’s manufacturer, Funtime Handels, based in Austria, has been ordered to pay $310 million in damages.
FreeFall Manufacturer Was The Only Defendant That Did Not Settle Out Of Court
Needless to say that $310 million is no small amount of money. The family accused the ride manufacturer of negligence when it came to the attraction's design, build and supervision. How the company would respond to such claims is something we don't actually know. According to WESH, the company never appeared in court to defend itself during the trial.
The lack of a defense is certainly one reason for the large damages award. The jury only ever heard the family's side of the story. Funtime Handels did inspect the tower shortly after the accident, but it seems that at some point, the company simply stopped responding to the issue.
Funtime Handels was the only remaining defendant in the lawsuit filed by Sampson’s family. Originally, the suit also included Slingshot, the owner of the attraction, and ICON Park, where the FreeFall tower was located, but those suits were settled out of court and the terms were not disclosed.
Unfortunately, the FreeFall accident would not be the only one of its kind in 2022. A 14-year-old girl in Denmark died in a roller coaster accident just a few months after Sampson fell. A month after that, several people were hospitalized due to a malfunction on the popular El Toro roller coaster at Six Flags Great Adventure. The coaster would remain closed for 10 months while it underwent significant maintenance.
An INvestigation Revealed The Attraction Had Been Modified
An investigation following the accident revealed that the weight limit for riders of the FreeFall drop tower was 275 pounds, a weight which Sampson exceeded by about 100 pounds. It was also discovered that seats on the tower had been modified to allow for larger riders. This led to a larger gap between the rider and the harness, which resulted in Sampson falling out while he was in the air.
The attraction closed following the teen’s death and never reopened. Dollywood closed its drop tower attraction, which was also built by Funtime Handels following the incident. Dollywood would eventually reopen its attraction. FreeFall was eventually torn down.
