The 2011 "Ride of Steel" Accident | A Short Documentary | Fascinating Horror
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- čas přidán 18. 05. 2024
- "On the 8th of July, 2011, a guest riding the Ride of Steel rollercoaster at Darien Lake amusement park in the state of New York was ejected from the ride as it crested a hill..."
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TRANSLATIONS:
► This video is also available in German ( • Der 2011 "Ride of Stee... )
SOCIAL MEDIA:
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CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Intro
00:45 - Background
03:43 - The 2011 Accident
07:15 - The Aftermath
MUSIC:
► "Glass Pond" by Public Memory
SOURCES:
► "Final Sheriff's Office report on death at Darien's 'Ride of Steel' contains new details" by Howard B Owens, published by The Batavian, August 2011. Link: www.thebatavian.com/howard-ow....
► "Theme-park patron ejected from roller coaster" published by VerdictSearch, March 2004. Link: web.archive.org/web/200709281....
► "Army amputee thrown from NY roller coaster, dies" by Ben Dobbin, published by The San Diego Union-Tribune, July 2011. Link: www.sandiegouniontribune.com/....
► "Real Stories - Sergeant James Hackemer" published by the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Link: www.polytrauma.va.gov/real-st....
► "Accident-Injury Reports and Final Reports for 2008, 2009 and 2011" published by State of New York Department of Labor, July 2011. Link: web.archive.org/web/201311041....
► "Darien Lake settles lawsuit stemming from death of Iraq veteran killed by falling out of a roller coaster" by The Associated Press, published by syracuse.com, January 2013. Link: www.syracuse.com/news/2013/01....
#Documentary #History #TrueStories
At one point in time, about 15 years ago, it was determined that I was too fat for one of the coasters at Knott's Berry Farm. Was it embarrassing to be in that situation? Of course it was. That said, thanks to the kids running the ride not being terrified of addressing me over a safety issue, I was not hurled to my death! Since then, I've lost 200lbs, and am coaster-ready.
Congratulations on being coaster ready!!
Congrats!! 😁
Amazing achievement!
Great job
Weight loss rarely happens when surrounded by people that don't want to hurt your feelings...general!y takes a stranger saying "you're fat" to spur change....it did with me
You definitely showed that coaster you were not to be mocked!
Good for you keep up the good work
A key piece of information was left out of this story.
The staff tried to keep the Sgt. off the ride, specifically because he didn't meet the "you need both legs" rule. He threw a fit and threatened to sue for discrimination... so the staff backed off and let him on.
I lived near Darien Lake and this was massive news for what seemed like ages.
Sources?
Exactly. I live about an hour from the park and I remember that being widely reported when this incident happened. Park staff shouldn't have let him on, but he wasn't completely blameless.
glad to see a lot of fellow WNY'ers in the comments bringing this up. I'm only now learning that apparently this info has been scrubbed from articles?? but literally every person from the area remembers it this way. Give those kids operating the ride at least a little credit.
Lol of course he did. Military is full of Karen's
I was going to enquire how his family managed to sue with this information but then I realised this happened in the US and you can sue someone just for sneezing over there.
As a veteran of Iraq myself, I am surprised at the Sergeants actions… I looked at the pamphlet for Disabled persons, the Superman ride was clearly not allowed… seems to me the park did their due diligence, the signs were in place and legible, the pamphlets were offered and provided…I dont think the family should have gotten anything, he was obviously being careless and disrespectful. A soldier should know better, we literally have it grilled into us to pay attention to details. And always have the right gear and safety in mind.
Thank you for your service!
Uh huh so if you've been told to guard an area and not to let anyone through who isn't wearing a gas mask are you going to let someone through without the correct gear because they threaten to report you to your CO for blocking their passage? Or are you going to follow your orders unless otherwise authorised by the appropriate chain of command?
Those ride operators had a responsibility to defend that roller coaster from the ineligible and they failed in that charge. That would be why they got sued.
Also I'm seeing a lot of people here saying the whole "the guy was an ass" story isn't factually correct nor supported by the official police report so I don't know if you need to go and do some recon over on Google or not.
@@desertmammoth3159 The staff were fucking kids! The grown fucking man went out of his way to ignore safety rules, safety signs, was rude to the ride operators (who, again, were teenagers!) and threatened to sue. So they let him on.
He thought himself invincible after surviving a war, and then came face to face with physics and died. His family STILL SUED!
@@desertmammoth3159 im pretty sure that the family/park employees stated that he had threatened a lawsuit for discrimination if he was not allowed to ride. if you are a teenager being threatened with something like that, you are probably unwilling to tell him no. he was also offered a leaflet for people with disabilities, but refused it iirc, something that would of certainly told him what rides he can and cannot ride.
in the end, he shouldn't of had his life taken. this should not of happened at all. ever since this happened, the park has had better restrictions and regulations so it should not happen again. that's all that can be done after the accident.
Am I the only one reading this comment to be horrified that the US military is torturing our boys in uniform by “literally grilling” them? The pain from the burns must have been excruciating, and the grill marks scarring their bodies would be permanent, unpleasant reminders of their service. Oh, wait, is this just another casual misuse of the term “literally”? Never mind.
Was at Six Flags with a good friend a few years back, and she's a pretty heavy set person. When we tried to get on the Batman, the safety bar wouldn't lock when the attendant tried to secure it on her. The guy, who probably wasn't much older than our teenage selves, was clearly awkward and uncomfortable telling her she couldn't ride because of her weight, but after watching this, I'm now eternally grateful that he withstood that undesirable situation and didn't let her on...
There wasn’t much that my chunky-ass family appreciated more in Orlando than the example seats of each ride being placed outside of the ride entrance. Perfect for seeing if you’d actually fit in it, or if it wouldn’t be great with a disability of some kind.
Oh wow, what a brilliant idea. Every park should do that. On the other hand, when will they start building rides JUST for the chunkies of the world? I'm what they term skinny (I hate that term, by the way - I turned into a health nut and became thin after my obese brother died after multiple strokes at a young age) but there is a big need for something like that, with 2/3rds of Americans being overweight or obese. There's no reason they couldn't build rides that cater only to the majority of adults. @@TheTownNarcoleptic
Being embarrassed bc of being fat is better than being
7:45
Ride attendants DID challenge him… several times. They also noticed he had no legs and DID take action. They actually did attempt to refuse him a few times, however Mr. Hackemer unfortunately pulled the discrimination card and threatened to sue. I wish he was actually kind and complacent like in the video. I’m upset the family sued too. :(
glad I'm not the only one losing my mind here by all the idiotic sympathetic comments 🙄🙄🙄
From what I remember they signed away their sueing rights originally so they weren't able to sue in the end.
Thank you for pointing that out. I guess I can understand how such details can be missed when you're not a local of the area, but this was definitely a case of the guest really being more at fault than the young park employees. I wish the video accurately described that. Usually I don't watch these but I was drawn in to this one since I already knew the story from living in the area.
@@headlightfluid1655 TOTALLY agree. How can you feel sorry for the guy when he was unquestionably AT FAULT? The ones you need sympathy for is the Ride Hosts and Hostesses on that ride, and for the guys nephew. He brought that on himself.
@@retrogamesmadeeasy8058 That's what settling is so they still got their big payday. The family of a Karen are often no different to the Karen.
This is in my back yard and this was huge news. The ride operators definitely tried to refuse him to ride, but he basically threw a huge tantrum and threatened to sue for discrimination. He intimidated the young ride staff into letting him kill himself. A very unfortunate situation, but I've not heard anyone put most of the blame on the staff. They tried to do their job and he still got on the ride. But he was doing what he wanted to do! I hope that staff was assured that they should kick off anyone who was clearly unfit to ride, no matter what they threatened.
Again, inadequate training. Possibly inadequate policies and procedures. Training in, "Sir, it is simply not safe for you to ride and if you do not exit on your own we will have to call security." But that's not just something where you need a policy, you need role play where a trainer plays the part of the stubborn park visitor.
@@thesisypheanjournal1271 you’ve obviously never dealt with a belligerent customer. Especially one who is disabled and a veteran. He threatened to sue the park for discrimination
Darien lake is your back yard!? You must be rich
@@jakeraught4939 it is a really hard thing to deal with! Which is why these workers need to be properly trained and encouraged to tell them to get their veteran asses off a ride that will kill them, and then have management back them up. And they also probably need a raise.
@@elloowu6293 😂 Definitely not. I just live in a place where a 2 hour car ride is nothing and people talk
You can literally just read on the wikipedia about how hard the ride attendants fought to not allow him to ride. It delayed the ride for ten minutes, with how long he argued that he should be able to board.
Which wikipedia article is that in? Because it's not in "Superman - Ride of Steel".
@@rocc9It's been scrubbed from many news articles on this tragedy. For whatever reason.
When I worked for a Cedar Point Amusement Park, during our training we were shown Sergeant Hackemer’s story to remind us to NEVER let a guest on with this kind of disability. We were even trained to deal with threats against the workers if we didn’t allow them on if they weren’t tall enough, didn’t fit the seat, etc. We screwed safety protocols into our 16 year old heads to prevent any accidents. I still think about this story even long after I stopped working for Cedar Fair. This guy survived the war but not a roller coaster 😭
No it wasn't to prevent any accidents, it was to prevent any law suits that could arise from said accident
@@SilverMe2004 While accidents/incidents are bad for business, that doesn't mean the people running the show don't care about visitor safety. I remember watching an interview with a Cedar Fair exec on one of the newer coasters. He was clearly in the job because he loved the coasters. He even talked through parts of that ride while other people screamed as he'd spent that much time on it. The park has shut down the Top Thrill Dragster for the 2022 season because of injuries to two guests late last season when a bracket fell off. That's a huge loss of revenue, but it's the right thing to do.
Michigan's adventure veteran here Becky
@@pazza4555 That guy was a complete asshole and sorry to say he got what he deserved.
Why are almost all of the ride operators teenager's? Don't they travel to the park and live/work there for the summer?
I lived nearby when this happened. I remember clearly it was reported that the staff did warn him and his family that he can't, but they made a big fuss and threatened to sue for discrimination. That's what was reported when it happened.
I'm sure that's the case. I can't believe the kids at the ride were that oblivious: they were intimidated into it.
If that's true, then it sounds like the bully got what he deserved.
@@LavaSherbert there are plenty of people who deserve to die. he was just a legless idiot who obviously lost more than his legs while in service..........aka his common sense.
@@headlightfluid1655 Considering he sold his soul to the US military to kill some foreign kids, he deserved it.
@@MezzoForte4 now that I don't agree with... however, people sign up, fight and die for your right to say it.
So he declined a pamphlet claiming he had one already. He obviously didn't read it then. He declined assistance onto the ride, a point at which an assistant may have challenged him about his height. It may have been clear at that point that the restraining bar wouldn't be suitable. I've known people with disabilities get very angry with people offering help. If these operators were young they may have felt intimidated. I don't see why the blame was put solely on the park. Nobody takes responsibility for their own actions anymore.
Exactly what I said
I agree, I suspect the park paid out as more of a PR exercise than admission of full culpability for the accident.
Fascinating Horror should re-upload this with information about how the veteran actually was belligerent and intimidated the workers into letting him ride on threat of a discrimination lawsuit
Based on what sources should he do that?
@@criostasis Everyone. His family and the workers who worked on that day
M R every single person familiar with the story knows this
yeah at the very least he could edit the video description which currently says "not once did ride operators challenge his decision". Valid journalists and documentary makers frequently cite people's reports and their lived experience, not just internet articles. He could just add something about locals remembering it differently.
@@jhourigan5899
Our host is always very quick to gloss over the patron's responsibility.
This is almost entirely the guest’s fault. He was too short for the ride, was rude to staff, and ignored procedures/rules. The staff should have intervened and not let him on but he had blatantly disregarded all rules and even threatened to sue. This is why we listen to the attendants and follow the rules. Worst case scenario, if they refused to let him on, he sues and the suit is thrown out because of the clear rules that have been in place for however long the park existed and he’d be alive today. However, he just had to throw a tantrum about it and force them to let him on.
Edit: I also wanna say that (this isn’t an excuse at all but) I get why the staff had been so intimidated and gave in. Yes, they still should have intervened but put yourselves in their shoes, y’all. These kids are fresh outta high school being screamed at and threatened by a double amputee war vet, they were probably scared as hell. My job isn’t even close to as potentially life-threatening but people get in my face, yell, and make threats all the time (yay Hospital work). It’s real easy to get intimidated or scared, especially if you’ve never been put in the situation before. I think it was wrong of them to let him on but I totally understand why they might have given in.
But if he had listened to all the nay sayers he would still be in a hospital bed needing someone else to wipe his bum (ie not recovered from the 1st injurie)
If I was in their shoes I would've called management to deal with the situation. Never been a ride operator but I work in the service/retail industry and whenever I get confronted with a difficult customer I always get a higher up involved.
@@mcrfan343 Yeah you also probably arent a high school student operating heavy machinery you dont know the physics of and therefore dont fully grasp the safety procedures behind in detail. Dont get me wrong, I feel you. I invoice for large contracts in the hundreds of thousands, and people scream and get loud and disrespectful. And I know to just let my director handle it at that point. But Im also an adult over 21 with prior work experience doing benign things like customer service. Amusement parks hire kids who are working for the first time. With limited training on how to deal with belligerence. They are not safey officers or risk assessment managers.
You and I are also privileged to even have managers on hand to call that are actually even semi competent. You really think the same amusement parks hiring kids to operate heavy machinery they dont understand the physics of, is gonna have competent management on hand (if any management) to deal with a situation like this? Most of the time theyre ignored and left to their own devices. The park is at fault for poorly training staff--staff that are basically kids--and this man, his family, and other nosey ass guests in line are at fault for pressuring clearly young, undertrained staff into violating safety procedures while threatening to sue. Using veteran status as an intimidation tactic. This was a horrible outcome for everyone involved. And if that was really you at age 16 dealing with this situation? Big doubt that you'd have done much differently.
His height had nothing to do with this!
You need legs for lap bars to have any use at all!
Even if he was technically tall enough the same result would have happened. It blows my mind why he would think he could ride this safely. He would have been ok on any ride with over the shoulder restraints but a lap bar? What was he thinking.
Just another rude American. At least he’s not around anymore.👋👋👋
Hey, just wanted to say thanks for the good subtitles. I like to watch youtube with a hard of hearing friend, and we really appreciate creators that actually subtitle their vids instead of using the auto generation.
Yes I agree so much! I have an auditory processing disorder and good subtitles always make a video so much more enjoyable
Amen!
I disagree... I have noticed that you put this same comment in all the videos. What the hell is wrong? Have you lost original thought? Did you vote for Brandon? C'mon man...
Yes thank you as I am brain dead 👍
@@lakeriver393 I know in your head that sounded smart and well thought out but it should've remained in your head, your the reason Republicans have a bad name, going out of your way to be an ass and bringing politics into something completely unrelated lmao.
As a former ride op for Six Flags, I'd have to say back in the 80's-90's you had to recert every season like supervisors as well. The guest "MUST" have enough limb to stay under restraint. NO single riders on certain rides. Head CAN NOT be taller from the top of head rest. I had a fellow that wanted to ride a launch coaster. His head was taller than the headrest. I told him he couldn't ride. He waited for a super to tell his dumb arse his neck would snap during the launch! 0-60 MPH! in 4 seconds. He wouldn't get off until told to. Hot summer in Houston, with line growing longer. GeeeeZZZZ!
0-60 in 4 seconds is not fast enough to snap your neck lmao.
Where's the headrest on a motorcycle when you do 0-60 in 3.5 seconds?
I think it is just an extra safety precaution.
If a rule like that is in place there is usually a reason behind it. Though I doubt OP knows more than what he was trained and told.
@@drumpftodd7887 the bottom line is, the guy was told he couldn't ride as his head was above the head rest, yet he still sat in the seat. If you ignore safety protocol, you can potentially get killed. Hope that's clear, you single cell pond life.
@@stephenalex4345 🤣🤣🤣👍
I've lived in WNY all of my life. I can assure you that employees told him he was not allowed to ride. There are only two restraint devices on the ride, both going over your thighs. The man had threatened to sue for discrimination if he was not alllowed on. Being young and most definitely nervous the employees gave through and let him on. This story was NEVER aired on national news due to being cleared up about a year after the incident occured. You can go to our local news, WIVB, and look at the story yourself there. I usually don't comment on videos, but those facts need to be cleared up.
The fact that the rules say "you must have two legs" and him literally not having any legs is hilarious in a very messed up way.
😂
No funny at all. 😢
The victim’s family said “he died doing what he wanted to do,” if they really felt that way, why did they sue the park? He chose to put himself in harms way, but others had to pay for that.
cause the attorney with all those dollar signs in his eyes probably talked them into it
Because while he did something he liked he still died
Free money is free money no matter where it comes from.
Karen's breed with male Karen's
Because in the United States it's almost tradition to scrape every last dollar you can from an unfortunate event, even it's your own fault, especially when you are in a social position where people praise you for some reason. The dude being a veteran and handicapped because of it would already be reason enough for a jury to agree with the park paying "damages". Such things would only happen in the USA, because of backwards thinking and sentiment in the courthouse.
I feel sorry for the nephew who had to saw his uncle sitting next to him being ejected from the ride, that is life time trauma.
Not to mention he’s the one who helped secure him. The poor boy
Yeah, I think his loved ones and the other people who had to witness the man plummet to his death are the real victims in this situation. I hope the nephew is doing okay.
this was my first thought as well, and his kids were in the park somewhere waiting for him. what a mess
...kinda sorta. the nephew put him in the ride. duh - having a lower body is kind of a requirement to live through a ride like that. it doesn't take rocket science to figure that one out.
*see his uncle
My sister was there for this, I used to live in Holland NY and they were having a field trip for her class, she told me that she remembers them telling the guy he couldn’t go on because of his disabilities. And then he died before she could get on next. She told me everybody was in shock and didn’t say anything. That’s all I remember.
It's always startling to me how little emphasis people place on personal responsibility.
I live near this park and have been on this ride several times myself. This was huge news when this happened and I remember clearly that when reporting about it, it was stated that he threatened to sue the park for discrimination. It's a sad story all around, after this they added a second further restraint and are super strict with how it fits and do not hesitate to ask people to get off.
So the park would have possibly lost either way. I mean in reality, if they proved in court, he would possibly be injured or killed, then he would lose that lawsuit. Still, paying lawyers for all of that. If this is true, it is sad, but it's his fault, and his family should have lost the lawsuit.
Yeah, I definitely remember the park staff trying to refuse him entrance to the ride but he bullied his way on.
yeah, as soon as i heard “the staff did nothing to stop him” i was like… i’ve heard a veeeeery different story that paints him in a way worse light. like you said, threatening the kids, pulling the disrespecting a vet card etc. they told him no MULTIPLE times but he refused to listen to the point of belligerence.
@@cookiekittens They should have called security and reported a belligerent patron. What was he gonna do? Beat them up? You try that crap at our park, you might as well argue with a block of granite. I tried once. ONCE. It was like hitting a blank wall. (I wanted to ride the ferris wheel by myself)
@@cookiekittens There were articles online that spoke to him being belligerent and demanding they let him ride but it seems they've been scrubbed. We were discussing this a few years back when we were at the park and a simple Google search brought up articles with witness statements from people in line that corroborated him demanding he ride. Now I can't find an article to save my life!
Listen, no one wanted this to happen. No one is happy that it happened. But at some point you have to take ownership of your well-being. He said he had the pamphlet (which says you cannot ride the Ride of Steel unless you have two legs) but he chose to go there first. Should he have been stopped? Absolutely...even if security had to be called. In 2020 a similar situation played out at Six Flags over Georgia where an amputee was denied boarding and guess what? It became huge news...human rights etc. I've ridden the Ride of Steel a few times and I barely felt comfortable with the lap bar and I am 6 feet tall. I can't even imagine anyone, including the rider, feeling comfortable about him going on the ride.
As a New Yorker nearish Darien Lake, I can say that the comments that mention how the staff did warn him is correct. Along with Mr. Hackemer challenging the staff, I remember hearing there was pressure from the guests in line to let him ride as well.
Hearing about it when it happened was pretty scary. Like your local amusement park having an incident like this.
Im also in new york. Also been to the park. Heard about it when it happened.
Nice to find someone else from the area in the comments
I bet those same guests had the "oh $hit" faces when he was hurled across the park. People need to mind their business, they only helped him closer to his grave.
Whatever brandy guy deserved it if you are too stupid to understand that a roller coaster at least most of them holds you above your thighs and that note having most of your legs will make you fly out you deserve it I have been on rides like this and smaller people almost slip out because of the way they hold you so not a good idea to go with no legs lol
@@6door6four96 whoa hey buddy I’m not defending the person or anything but nobody deserves to die like that man
That bugs me that the person who put this together would leave out such an integral part of the case. I know viewers have to fact check to get the big picture but many don't and what's the big deal that they couldn't tell that part?
He's absolutely partially responsible! There is no way he could have possibly looked at a ride with a lap bar and not thought there was a risk. He chose to attempt to ride anyway. He put himself in a position where someone else's questionable decision making lead to his death. A drop of common sense on his part would have prevented this.
Love Fascinating Horror, but this story was spun the wrong way, leaving me to question future spin on these stories. The vet purposely ignored and lied about knowing safety measures and procedures. It was the vet’s own damn fault. He was too arrogant and pig headed. Some have claimed he was a complete a**hole to staff about riding the coaster. Playing the, ”I can do anything” card when in reality he clearly couldn’t. And his family sued when it was their fault. This video made him look like some heroic victim, when he was wasn’t. Vets can be moronic idiots just like those who did not serve and were at fault in prior videos. You do not need to sugar coat this guy all because he served in the military.
Why is everyone blaming the creator of this video when there is no report that describes what you're all saying? I don't know what to believe, but without a REAL source I couldn't report that either.
@@Maspets not blaming, addressing. There are reports of this and the facts of the original investigation speak for themselves…James ignored the rules, and completely disregarded/lied about having disciplinary safety knowledge, which is key in the military. In the more recent BBC stunt disaster FH video, the show’s producers ignored key rules of performing the stunt, and they clearly ignored the safety rules. They were no different than James’s actions. They were not addressed as heroes, and James is no different. He could’ve seriously injured someone else in the result of him being thrown, all because of his faults.
@@TheSharkIsWorking_23 Reports? Where?
1st the "I can do anything" is what likely got him that far. ie to walk again, etc
2nd I have seen it stated that in the official police reports the staff said that they didn't challenge him.
however as it was reported that onlookers sided against the staff, the staff must have done something unlike what was presented in this video.
No he said that they are underexperenced
With such a old veteran
Not they the staff were witchcrafting scgeners
Believe me or not, I actually worked a few summers at this exact park. Granted my time there was a couple years after this incident (2014-2016) but my first summer there I worked rides and let me tell you, the scars of this incident were everywhere in the way they trained and how quickly they transferred ANY employee that made ANY kind of safety violations during ride procedures there. I myself was transferred to the water park for the remainder of the summer after I made an error securing the door on a seat of the Ferris Wheel (there was no one in that particular cart so no one was in danger but the mere mistake was enough to get me booted). I never personally worked Ride of Steel but I heard from employees that did just how much they were watchdogged to get everything right after this. The sheer stress of the process gave me terrible nightmares and paranoia while working the job so i'm glad that I got into the midway games from then on. They were not messing around with the safety of the park after this.
All this being said, I can also speak to the sheer belligerence of Guests at the park when they are even remotely told not to do something in line or God forbid being prevented from riding the ride. While I can only speculate based on rumors and talk from employees that were there when it happened the story I heard was that this man and/or his relatives were pretty actively hostile towards the ride operators and refused any and all interaction with them as alluded to in the video. There was absolutely no ability for the operators to do their job much less want to deal with another irate and impatient Guest. I'm not making excuses for them nor saying that this man's death was anything short of a tragedy, but if what they went through at the time was even a fraction of what I did years later I can understand how this happened especially since there were probably dozens if not hundreds of other Guests in line also giving them a hard time. Just for a personal example, I was once threatened with physical violence from an enormous adult man for preventing him from trying to take his tiny child onto a ride she was less than half the height required to go on. People will go to extraordinary lengths to get what they want and sometimes overworked and stressed employees simply don't have the courage and/or the authority to stop them.
Apologies for this comment being really long but seeing this video pop up randomly in my suggested videos brought back some memories XD
I'm glad you went into detail. Your insight shows the other side of many of these types of situations. I agree with you, it was a tragedy, but the ones I feel the most sorry for are those ride ops.
I agree. People are assholes
I worked security services at a Canadian amusement park many years ago . It was surprising to see how people’s sensibility would switch off when they entered the park ….especially ones who were used to authority on the outside.
Thanks for your input. It is good to hear that the park took safety very seriously while you were there.
Thank you for confirming my suspicions that it was probably mostly his own fault. Especially after not properly reading safety instructions.
Apparently it’s pretty well known that staff definitely told him he could not ride and he threatened to sue. I don’t understand why this video explicitly says he was not warned. Like it would be horrific either way, but this way there’s some undeserved blame on the staff. Obviously they should have refused him to board the ride regardless of his threats.
I heard this information was scrubbed from high end new articles discussing the situation. I'm guessing Fascinating Horror had to make sure to find a credible source to link to be able to put that information in but didn't find it in time or found the source. So he didn't want to throw accusations around in case it was false. Just my thought on it
Pretty well known from where? In the police report none of the 3 young ride attendants mentioned they confronted him. They mentioned they noticed him when boarding, but nothing about speaking with him. So where exactly is this information you have?
@@potocatepetl there's a lot of anecdotical reports of people mentioning staff was aware of why he couldn't ride and even confronted him about it. Him threatening to sue if they didn't let him ride and pressure from him (in some stories they say some bystanders also cheered for him to be able to ride since he pulled the vet card). You can even find some in this comment section and there's other people who covered this topic having those stories as well.
@@Baka-kun I saw some comments, but all you say (and the other commets say) was never proven. Also, all the comments have the same idea, but no proof. If the police report does not include such statements and the statements of the attendands do not include this information I do not see how it could be true. What interest would the attendands have not to tell that they tried to stop him and he refused? Acnetodes are fun, but not relevant.
@@potocatepetl I mean when its 20 locals telling the same story I just kinda believe them they get nothing out of making up a lie like that. They might have left those statements out of a police report because they weren't known at the time or they dont want to make a vet look bad.
When I worked on a ride in Disney world, it wasn’t uncommon where we would have to redirect guests to another attraction because of their disabilities could potentially cause harm to them if they rode our ride. Once I had to height check a little person to make sure she was tall enough to ride. I felt so bad for asking but we had to be sure she would be able to ride safely.
I'm 4'9 and some of my short statured family members are much smaller, trust me, we don't mind! It's nice people care of course.
Height isn't anything to be self conscious about- at least we believe so in my family. We don't mind if people ask more about having Dwarfism (short statured if preferred, I'm fine with saying the condition) as long as it's respectfully and out of curiosity. We definitely do things differently after all so it's completely understandable. People are always suprised at how low our counters are! The house has many adjustments made. My favorite is our oven, it looks miniaturized because the entire floor itself is raised in the kitchen. Super cute if you ask me.
Now I'm just rambling...
My motto: You can't change your height, so if you don't fit, ya just don't fit!
I’m from Buffalo and rode this coaster many many times, and if you have, then you KNOW you needed legs to securely ride as the force literally would lift you out of your seat. The bar / guard pressed down tightly on you upper thighs, so yeah you needed to have legs 🤷🏾♀️
Yeah esp if youre in the back of the coaster that first drop will drag your ass down so fast lol
I’ll never understand why this coaster only has a lap bar/seatbelt
@@BumbletheBea because it doesn't go upside down is my guess
I've worked this ride, and worked with the employees who were working it that day. The lap bar was working properly and locked into place; he downplayed his condition and was very rude to the operators.
The ride operators WERE aware of the rules, and fought him about it. Obviously the ride should have never left the station to begin with, but he was told. And got into the seat anyway. We are not allowed to help guests into their seat, so it was one of his own family members that put him in there.
I suppose you weren't allowed to help him because of policy issues? Like if you were to help and he would fall, then he could sue you and the park? I ask because something similar happened to me when I was a teen and disabled which I found confusing.
@@swallowedinthesea11 that’s right, I worked for cedar fair and we were told not to help anyone one because we aren’t trained for that kind of stuff
As someone that worked the mirror image of the ride the operators were fine until they hit dispatch enable. If he's locked in the train it's a perfect place to wait for the area supervisor and security.
@@swallowedinthesea11 it’s actually a pretty common liability. When I briefly was at Dorney it was partially because we weren’t trained for it (various conditions, proper weight sharing, etc) and because of the possibility of the guest feeling harassed if helped wrong. Taking cues from Disney incidents of course.
@@Vicky-fi3yr Hi Bicky! I wasn't notified of your reply until now, but thank you for the explanation!
Such a shame - a true accident. When I was about 7-8 yrs. old, my parents & I were at an amusement park, which had a roller coaster I wanted to ride very much. I was too small to ride, but the operator told my parents that if 1 of them ride with me, I could ride. My mom was terrified to ride, so my dad, who'd been drinking a bit, said he'd ride with me. Well, when we created the big drop, I literally came up out of the car. My dad snatched me back in, & sat on me until the ride was over. When we got off, my mom told dad he was white as a sheet, & he told her, "I was drunk when I got on, but I'm sober as a judge now!". I was VERY lucky.
Did you die?!
@@TheMusicalFruit I'm pretty sure the afterlife doesn't have internet access yet.
@@Dany1239 that’s a bold assumption.
Welp, Dad did his job, even though he had been drinking.
Good for him.
I don’t care for drunks (work at a gas station), but sounds like he really loves you, and alcohol does not inhibit that.
Your lucky he’s your dad🥲
@@equarg You're*
Good day, sir.
I am a Buffalo, NY native
I was 13 years old and at the park on the date of this incident.
I saw this man in line for the ride, as I was getting on and off…..
I remember being so disturbed that I saw him in line after I learned what happened later that day.
Seeing this video just made me remember this forgotten memory. Thank you for covering something near my home town!
I went to this park as a kid and wanted to go on the ride of steel, but I was too small. My parents vehemently told me height and size restrictions are there for a reason. Crazy to think it happened on the exact ride they said that about.
Honestly according to people who were there when it happened, he was being stubborn. Yes, we can blame the workers for not being stern enough to maybe call security or explain. However, his death is also his responsibility. Suddenly living with disability can distress someone and make them wanna live "normal", that's understandable..but to simply being ignorant about safety and wanting to be treated like everyone else in this matter is plain stupidity. It's just very unfair to put all the blame on the teenager workers when a middle aged vet man also kept pushing and demanding to be let on the ride.
Agree my guy
@@preztrump4310 AWW! I agree my guy! I💓PRESIDENT TRUMP. lgb
I think the family needs to be held accountable, too. How they looked at that coaster and thought; "hey, you're missing the main thing holding you in place on this high- speed, g-force ride, so, yeah, let's totally try our luck, lol!" is genuinely beyond my understanding.
Thank you
The guy had the arm strength to hold himself in (he made it over the first few drops and turns), but a momentary lapse of reason was all it took for him to be flung out. Pride can be a dangerous thing.
It sounded like they, especially he, never bothered to carefully go through the safety restrictions. “NO LEGS, NO RIDE” should have been a big red flag. It needed to be front and center in the pamphlet and the guest needed to be responsible for reading it carefully. Also, the guest services person should have verbally gone through rides with restrictions as a matter of course. Don’t just say “Here’s the pamphlet of information”; go through it with every guest requesting information. Highlight the ones that address their specific needs, and I mean specific. “In a wheelchair” could mean something like MS, amputations, bad heart, paraplegia or other disabilities, temporary or permanent. A guest in a boot or arm cast for an injury would need to know different restrictions. That way the park would cover their asses.
to be fair, historically, soldiers' brains aint their forte.
@@TheMusicalFruit That’s impossible actually you can’t hold yourself in a roller coaster traveling that fast.
I remember the horror of riding roller coaster with my grandma when some rides didn't have height restrictions and the restraint was a single lap bar for the 2 person car. She was very heavy leaving a solid foot between me and the bar. I had to hold on for dear life. Maybe that's why I still have dreams about riding a coaster with no restraints.
Oh my god that’s terrifying, that must have been so traumatic.
This happened to me one time on a log flume ride. The ride lap restraints only went down to my mother's waist and not mine, and as someone who was a bit of a socially awkward kid at the time, I didn't speak up, but just held the dang bar for dear life as I felt myself slipping out during the plunge. Nowadays, I know the importance of speaking up when something is obviously very wrong rather than keeping my mouth shut and getting myself in a bad situation, but kids don't typically have the awareness to know that something isn't right. Thankfully, I was already afraid of thrill rides to begin with and was pressured to go on it, so naturally my instinct was to hold onto the bar and really all this situation did was reinforce that fear in me rather than get me over it like my mother had intended it to, but not all kids have that fear.
I go to Darien lake every other year or so and let me tell you that the ride of steal has a horizontal seatbelt at your waist and another horizontal bar at the waist too, your legs are the main thing keeping you in it, the fact he was allowed to ride without legs is insane to me
Apparently he was very combative and threatened to sue if he wasn't allowed to ride and if you're a teen you will get scared by the threat and back off most the time. You're there to make a quick buck, you don't want any trouble
exactly! insane
Why is it always somebody else's fault? The Sgt refused to read or acknowledge the safety warning for the handicapped. Nobody takes responsibilities for their own doing anymore.
Exactlt
Exactly ***
They don’t want to be labeled as prejudice these are strange times
Yes, that was definitely his fault and maybe his family's fault as well (not sure if he was psychological or neurological fit). Not reading and acknowledging the rules. But so were the park attendees. If they weren't relevant or needed, then they wouldn't be employed. There were 3 of them, no one challenged him (I know some people like to think he was challenged, but the police report and the statements of the 3 young men show something else). That should not have happened. Considering they settled at 2,85 million, I assume it was considered a shared fault.
@@heatherwilliams2565 You could have just edited the first comment. 😮
Yeah I'm not sure I'd be blaming staff. If you're getting on a ride that holds you in by your legs, it's probably better to have some legs.
Again I’m evil - I did laugh at your comment. I know I shouldn’t but I do have a dark sense of humor.
💯
Let alone 2 hips . . .
Amen
@@andyrob3259 cos it was funny. You're not evil. You've just got a sense of humor.
Ironically... I know the guest who was injured (he was given a huge pile of money), and I was also there the day James had passed away. Walking towards the Ride of Steel we were immediately stopped by a group of staff telling everyone to move back and turn around. My friend looked at my and said 'Jeez, they act like someone died or something.'
as a ride op i’ve had to deal with many guests like this and its incredibly concerning the lengths people will go to when they are in denial. im glad when there was unruly guests who were adamant their child should ride when the kid was clearly not meeting the coaster requirements, my supervisors were quick to step in and remove them from the platform.
The fact that the family sued the park was the real fascinating horror here.
Not really because the employees should have just given him a blatant no, refused to start the ride, and called security if he refused to leave. They can’t just fold like that. Ultimately it’s still his fault for getting on but that should have never been allowed to happen.
well that's because all of America is a horror park ride. my brother was sued for just over $1,000,000 successfully by a minority female who claimed discrimination in his business dealings with her. Get this: she came to him BECAUSE she believed she was being discriminated against by another business (which she also sued successfully). don't move to CA, NY, or CONN unless you're okay with frivolous lawsuits and rich-by-sue neighbors.
especially since the sign couldn't have been more clear
They settled out of court? Must have been a good amount of money - into the millions?
Things to avoid after watching this channel:
-Amusement Parks
-Ships
-Planes
-Clubs
-Shoppingmalls
-The ice cream parlor
Don't forget about trains.
And Theatres, Trains and Bridges as well.
Wearing hats
And becoming President and saying to your wife ‘I’m a bit bored honey, how about diner and a night at the theatre’
"The ice-cream parlor" 🤣😂🤣
“He died doing what he loved/feeling normal”
Uhhh, yeah until the overwhelming terror of impending death hit him.
We covered this story back then on CF, and you've missed the part where the guy was determined to ride and basically put himself in the seat. It changes the feel a lot the way youve reported it in this video. Otherwise, good job,
This is just so sad. As a former ride operator, I can understand that when you're processing tons of guests, it can get stressful and require multitasking. But I feel like the training I received was very thorough and that there's no way I'd have let a double amputee ride our rides where ejection might be a concern. (Then again, that was at a Disney park, and they tend to have more intensive training in general.)
That is why I have gotten to a point where I will only do Disney - I know that safety is the number one priority even if very expensive.
Absolutely spot on for anything owned by Cedar Fair.
@@dawnraynor8794 Disney does have some skeletons of it's own.
@@ianmichalski7997 I have heard that and I guess it is to be expected with most theme parks.
im not disagreeing, but i think the age of the operators is very important- the OLDEST was 21, which is a year younger than i am now. im biased bc im a local and a lot of kids i went to hs with worked at Darien Lake (though no one i knew was a coaster operator) but i still feel like even at my age now id be hesitant/ uncomfortable confronting a man who was a veteran/amputee to tell him he *couldnt* do something in front of his family. im not saying that that discomfort shouldve been enough to stop them, but i think like many of these incidents its just the horrible culmination of a lot of not-good or not safe things that were going on
I appreciate the sympathy for the young park staff. I’m sure this event haunts them, if it were me I’d always regret I didn’t say something in time.
It's a tough situation they were in. Nobody wants to have to be the person telling the guy in a wheelchair he can't do something, and unfortunately, they probably thought "Maybe it's breaking protocol, but he should be fine, right?". While this was an entirely preventable tragedy, I see no direct positive change coming from villainizing those people, if they're anything more than terrible people I'm sure the guilt has been enough for them.
Multiple news reports also said he threatened to sue for discrimination if he wasn’t allowed on the ride so the operators consented.
@@UncoordinatedPixie if that’s the case (and I’m not saying it is or not) then it’s a damn shame the park awarded his family a red cent. I don’t think he deserved to die, but I don’t think bullying your way into catastrophe should get a cushy financial award. Sometimes the legal system just fucks over a business, you hate to see it.
And the nephew, that poor kid. He was the one who helped him get seated, that must haunt him every day.
@@MrZoolook " dO yOu HaVE A sOurCe? " why can't you look it up if you don't believe it and stop being lazy
Yikes! I'm in no danger of getting on a coaster voluntarily in the foreseeable future, but that's a good thing, because I'm also a double amputee.
I live near here. I remember feeling bad for the kid running the ride because he originally refused to let the man on the ride, but he became argumentative. He was a veteran and threatened to sue the park unless he was let on... in a way, it was his own fault.
Glad to see other WNY locals filling in some of the gaps. I don't feel bad for this dude, like at all, but I feel bad for the teenage ride opperators that likely got traumatized from this. It's not their fault.
*is completely their fault
@@the4tierbridge You're a clown. Guy was arguing with them and threatening them with a discrimination lawsuit. Not only that but you had his family AND other people in the line fighting with them and telling the employees to just let him on. He made his bed.
@@kono8172 and not calling security was never considered because?
Saying someone should die because they were rude to sube dumb kids once is kinda, extreme.
@@the4tierbridge Noone said he "should've" died. The guy, his family and other people in line were being horrible to the ride operator, when you're a fairly young person being shouted at by a whole family plus random people rooting for them, threatening to sue for discrimination, that shit is fucking scary. I agree that if someone said he deserved to die that's fucked up, but if you're gonna get mad for not following rules, you have to expect consequence yknow, especially on potentially fatal stuff like rollercoasters
@@the4tierbridge bro deserved it, natural selection
He threatened to sue when the attendants did stop him. So they let him get on... That's kind of an important part here that is left off.
They should have called a supervisor in to deal with the jerk. That's the part I don't get. "Sir, you can't ride this coaster, you unfortunately do not meet the physical requirements". "Oh, OK, you will sue us for discrimination if we don't allow it? Enjoy the ride". Stupid. Escalate to the supervisor. Or was there a supervisor there too?
@@jackrabbit6515 I heard he was not just threatening to sue but being overall belligerent to the kids working the ride. I'm not surprised they backed down with an angry old war vet yelling at them. I will always think the blame solely lies on him. He forced it knowing the dangers. This is also why it makes me nervous that such dangerous rides are run by impressionable teens, though.
@@jackrabbit6515 Because when you're a 17 year old kid getting screamed at by a legless vet AND his nephew AND the crowd behind you there is a possibility you give in. Should they of? No, but they were literally children, perhaps we should place some blame on the grown-ass adult screaming at children to let his legless ass on a ride that wasn't in the "Disable rider's safe" brochure. At some point people need to take responsibility for their own actions.
Proximity position sensors do not cost that much. If the person is the wrong size, the light is red; you don't get on. The light is green you can go.
I lean towards the veteran being at significant fault in this case. I find i most reasonable that the veteran knew and understood that while it was _on paper_ or "officially" unsafe, in practical terms he would be safe and in no danger while on the ride. I'm going to look into this incident in search of greater detail since the content style of FH is on the lighter side. But I do find it significant that in this short video alone there are two separate instances of the veteran declining help/assistance/advice from ride attendants on-site. It's fair to believe this would have contributed to increasing any psychological unsteadiness ride staff were attempting to navigate. To find yourself in a situation like this, caught completely off-guard, where you're suddenly in a position where you've got to put on this authoritarian demeanor for the purpose of having to to tell a grown, double amputee to kick rocks.
Just over this spring break a 14-year-old boy here in Florida fell from a slingshot ride in one of the amusement parks and he died on impact. There’s a video that shows him being launched out of the ride and you can literally hear the thump he made when he fell. I’m hoping his story will be on here. In my opinion I kind of blame the workers because not only did they tell him he couldn’t go onto other rides because he was overweight But they let him go on that one knowing he was overweight and that poor boy knew that he was at secured inside of his seat so the sad part is he knew he was going to die. It’s all over the news and it’s pretty interesting so if you’re interested you could look it up
I was in High School when this event took place, and live about 45 minutes from the park. I can remember everyone being confused as to why a man with no legs was allowed to board the ride. We were all familiar with the restraint system, which entirely secures one's legs, but nothing else. There's a lap belt, shin braces, and a lap bar. Three points of contact, all on the lower extremities. Very unfortunate event, and I'm pretty sure everyone who lives in the area remembers when it happened.
@ghost mall the restraint system is purposely done so you get that floating feeling over the hills. Like was said previously, there’s only a seatbelt, a bar across your shins, and a bar across your thighs. Even the back of the seat doesn’t come up very high. Frankly, it’s a little terrifying, but it adds to the trill, and it is verrrry secure. Provided you actually have legs of course.
@ghost mall lots of modern coasters at Six Flags, Cedar Fair parks, etc. only have lap bars or thigh restraints. It was on him to ride one of these coasters, and not one with shoulder restraints. Some people are just pig headed. Darwin takes care of them.
@ghost mall Over the shoulder restraints are the bane of coaster lovers. They have not proven to be safer than restraint systems which utilize the lower body only, and can actually cause minor injuries if the ride isn't perfectly smooth (which, after a few years, most coasters are not).
This man not only was missing legs, he didn't have an intact trunk, so standard over the shoulder restraints would not have guaranteed his safety either.
I can completely understand his frustration, with so many roadblocks already in his way, it would be tough to take a day at a theme park and instead of joining in the fun he would have been forced to sit by the sidelines and watch others ride all the big coasters. The result was a tragedy for everyone involved, no matter who was actually to blame (although I lean towards placing most of the blame on the deceased since he seemed to be actively working towards riding a coaster that any logical person would have passed on, especially once they entered the ride car and realized that the leg restraints literally had nothing to restrain).
The attendants probably thought "well, he knows what he's able to do" and "someone else would've stopped him by now" and didn't speak up.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I think their young ages contributed as well, like he said.
Plus, there's an ingrained deference for war veterans, especially disabled ones. I'm guessing nobody wanted to be the one who turned down a hero.
Nobody wants to be the guy that has to tell somebody they're not allowed to do something that everybody else is allowed to do.
The fact that he got on that roller coaster wearing a hat shows he was not a veteran roller coaster rider. Otherwise he would have put his hat in his pocket when the ride began. He probably maybe would have been okay if he held on with his arms, but he let go to try and grab his hat as it flew off.
One time I was riding Millenium Force at Cedar Point and my seatbelt would not stay locked. The bar came down and locked, but there was a couple inch gap between the bar and my legs. So I held on to the bar tightly with my arms. I was fine. Also nobody else died on that ride that day, so I assume everyone else was able to hold onto the bar tightly. If I had let go, for example to reach for a hat, I could have slid out. But I have ridden roller coasters before and put all loose items like hats, glasses, and cell phones in a pants pocket or in a coat pocket that zippered or buttoned shut.
Here's the thing though... They did speak up, and it wasn't in the video for whatever reason. I live an hour away from there and was 16 when this happened. The guy got huffy when ride operators confronted him about it, so they let him get on anyway. Everybody I know knows the story that way. Crazy how things can get twisted over the years and now this video makes it look like it was all on the park.
I’ve ridden this coaster many times from the first year it was built. I once saw the operators refuse to let someone ride because they were too fat. The man was very angry. (I can’t remember if that was before or after this incident occurred.)
I can tell you, even in the front seat, you get a lot of air time on this coaster. I’d never attempt it if I had no legs like him.
i'm 4'11" at ~120lbs and one of my biggest fears is being too small for a coaster. Half the time I don't feel secure in the harnesses at all and it really sucks bc i cant make my torso longer or something so there's no way to fix the issue. can't even enjoy the ride most the time because I'm holding on for dear life.
You always tell these stories with so much compassion while remaining unbiased and objective.
It’s difficult to say who was in the wrong. He probably thought that the height restrictions were for children and figured his torso was of a grown adult man and the ride harnesses would have taken care of him. Then assumed staff would stop him if it were unsafe.
I know I would have struggled to tell someone no at that age as well. They probably still lived with Mum and Dad and still think that adults always know what’s best. It also difficult to dictate to a differently abled bodied person what they can and cannot do.
The only reason the you need to have legs rule existed on Ride of Steel is because of it's restraint system. Lap bars with a seat belt. It kinda needs legs to function properly.
But I can definitely see why he'd think the height restrictions were just for kids, if a kid is too small for a ride, they can slip out of the restraints. He looks like he wasn't too small for the ride at all, it's just his disability made it unsafe for him to ride because the restraints couldn't hold on to him the way they were designed to.
I think a better way to look at it is to ask "who is responsible?"
He has a responsibility for his actions, but the rider operators are also responsible for the safety their passengers - that's literally part of their job and even if you subscribe to the "play stupid games, win stupid prizes" view as some in the comments are, by allowing him to ride they also compromised the safety of all their other passengers and, possibly, other guests in the park.
I'm not unsympathetic to them - as you say, they were very young, this likely the first job for some of them and I'm sure this incident weighed on them. And this is where we need to look at the park's owners and management, who are responsible for the training of their staff (and again, the health and safety of their customers) and state of the workplace environment.
While the gentlemen is unquestionably to blame for his reckless decision, the park's poor management failed to prevent this accident.
(I also wonder if when he went to customer information, had the person who offered him a leaflet had instead gone through the relevant information with him, taken the time to explain which rides wouldn't be suitable for him (and advise whether or not wearing his prosthetics would make a difference) whether this would still have happened.)
Well when it comes to life or death it wouldn't be a struggle for me im asking questions then calling my boss, sometimes in life or death situations we have to do whatever it takes to keep someone safe disabled or not. We might need 5 to 10 year old children to operate the ride because kids that age are brutally honest and would be like..." hey sir your silly if you think you can ride the ride with no legs giggle, giggle " and probably would of saved the man's life
@@thepanpiper7715 It is the park managements responsibility to make sure the staff's training is reinforced. When not a single one of them step up, the problem is higher up.
@@thepanpiper7715, I agree. The concierge or guest services rep should have gone through the pertinent information with him, especially if he or she could see that he was an amputee. It should be SOP to go through the information with the guests, not just say “Here’s a pamphlet.” If they bitch, you say “I’m required to go through this with you and tell you what’s here. It’s for your safety.” Yes, it’s time consuming and requires personnel, but the park needs to cover their asses.
Rides with restrictions like “requires legs” should have a specific employee position responsible for walking the cars and checking all passengers before the ride starts. If that person was stationed where handicapped guests would be entering from the exit side, he could have been caught before he ever got himself on the ride. Require that handicapped guests be checked and assisted no matter what to insure that they will, in fact, be safe on the ride. Perhaps Mr. Hameker would have been found out before the ride started. Better to be embarrassed from being told “No” than be thrown to your death.
Few things:
Rider was well aware that his disability was significant enough that it wasn’t safe to ride everything. So much so that he specifically went to ask staff about it. Declined a pamphlet he or his wife could carry around and read requirements.
The rider had prosthetic limbs, but despite the fact that they could have greatly improved his experience at the park, left them at home.
I guarantee the “if I don’t wear my prosthetics and am in a wheelchair we can cut lines easier and not be questioned”. I’ve never known anyone disabled who didn’t say this… they usually have the “well if I have to live disabled then taking full advantage of handicap accommodations is one of the few benefits I will utilize in places like Disney etc”
Rider gets on the ride having no conversation with staff or taking time to read the sign that says you have to have two legs.
I’m sorry but this entire situation was his fault not the park. He was very well informed and knew his disability was a safety hazard on some rides but was grossly negligent.
This was comparable to sitting in a seat at the emergency door on a plane for extra foot room knowing you can’t physically open that door if sht goes down. Signs literally saying “don’t sit here if you think you might be unable to open the door” are posted on the door and flight attendants even say you can change seats if you feel you can’t properly operate the escape door.
Plane has accident and family wants to sue saying their loved one was unable to open the door and flight staff should have interrogated him about his ability to sit there.
A woman just fell through a draw bridge that was lifting despite alarms, flashing lights, and the ground literally moving in front of her. She wasn’t blind or deaf and thought she could do what she wanted and now her family will sue bc she made poor choices.
People need to be held responsible for dumb/reckless sht they do. It’s not “victim blaming” bc they aren’t a victim.
Spot on. While I get his determination to lead a normal life, it sounds like his pride got in the way of accepting help and advice.
Many veterans return home psychologically hurt. War changes people. He may have lost some of his ability to rationally assess situations like the one that led to his death.
And I'm speaking as someone with diagnosed PTSD. Trauma ruins the brain in so many ways. My disability requires others to help me better assess situations. Even though I've been through 5+ years of intensive therapy I still need help. It is hard to rationalize things when your brain is literally missing neurological connections.
Especially since this was the first "normal" activity he's experienced since leaving treatment, I understand why he was upset to be told "no". His family didn't know any better either, and underpaid theme park employees cannot force people to follow rules.
Overall, the entire situation is tragic. Try to be more empathetic. Everyone was a victim in this story.
@@katf3155 The guy most likely struggled to rationalize the situation. His legs weren't the only things he lost in war
@@SprinkledFox This helped me look at this in a different light. Ty. He was still over entitled though.
even if the dude wasn’t in his right mind, why wasn’t his family more involved? i’d be screaming at my loved one and possibly be willing to sacrifice our relationship to spare their life. but of course, i suppose you just can’t know exactly what you’d do unless you were in their shoes..
"Dumbass died, please revisit your training"
Joke aside apparently the dude got angry about not being able to ride and threatened to sue for discrimination. That's why he was allowed on, that's why he flew off of the rails and onto the asphalt where he met his final fate. Well, he certainly got the thrills he paid for. All it cost was a big post-mortem settlement. Hope it was worth it!
I know he felt goofy as hell flying in the air. Like damn, they told me
Reading all the comments here about how this guy acted makes me appreciate how many times this kind of thing has probably been avoided, either by good training or counter-belligerence by the staff. These were teenagers running this thing, I can't blame them for being intimidated and letting the guy ride, and at the same time I can't imagine how many accidents have been avoided in theme parks through history because the people running the ride were sticklers for the rules... we hear about these horrible accidents, but we don't hear about all the times it could have happened and didn't. Good on all those ride operators out there who have refused to be intimidated, or called a guest's bluff on suing the park.
It sounds to me like bringing a hat on a rollercoaster is a spectacularly bad idea. Dying in an attempt to retrieve a lost hat is a surprisingly common theme in ride accident reports. Maybe this guy could even have survived the ride if he had held on with both hands at all times, instead of reaching for his hat. Then again, if one's safety on the ride depends on hanging on with both hands, the situation is not remotely safe at all.
There's a yes-and-no. A lot of people, especially those friends and family of mine who have been on the Ride of Steel (it's literally a 3 hour drive from my apartment) claim to not hold on. I, personally, hold on even for like 75% of Darien Lake's "Predator" and would thus never willingly go onto the "Ride of Steel". But, if my brothers and dad and aunt and high-school classmates and college classmates and cousins could go through with moments where they weren't holding on, I would posit there was a deeper issue at play than just "the ride depends on hanging on with both hands".
I think the bigger issue is that he lacked feet and thus wasn't properly restrained by the restraint systems.
It is. I always take mine off and secure it in some way on my person, such as a carabiner clipped on my small purse.
@@onijester56 The deeper issues is definitely the lack of lower limbs, given that the primary restraint system was the leg bar. I think the point the previous commenter is trying to make, however, is that, while him being on the ride at all was incredibly dangerous, if he held on with both hands, it's possible that would have been enough to prevent the fatal accident (despite the lack of lower limb restraint). Not sure whether this is true, though, given the forces involved in the ride.
Should have never boarded ....
@ Erland - I love that your initial takeaway was ‘don’t wear a hat’.
I remember this being on the news. As others have said, it was reported that he WAS confronted and told it wasn't safe, but that he insisted, and they backed down because yeah, they were young. Rumors went around like wildfire that he had claimed he would sue the park for disability discrimination, but I don't remember any news outlets saying that. One other thing I remember is that for the rest of the year, they took down their TV ads, at least out where I was. Some said it was out of respect, and others said it was to save money for the ongoing lawsuit.
The three young men that worked the ride did not mention anything in their police report about confronting him. They mentioned they noticed him and noticed he had no legs, but mention nothing about any type of discussion or confrontation. So who exactly reported that they did? The park at that time did not make any statements either as the trial was still on. So?
I’ve been on this ride and I’m not surprised that this happened after this ride uses lap bars instead of the shoulder ones like most coasters. And I understand he probably wanted to have “fun” but it’s never worth risking your life for. And In a way it sounds like he didn’t care about the idea of risking his life if he had to Manipulate the staff to let him on.
he died like he lived
whit no care in the world
You can't use a lap restraint if you have no lap. And he could have killed someone on the ground.
Very few (if any?) non-inverting coasters use shoulder restraints.
Even before reading the comments you could basically guess what had really gone down here.
It's sad that we now live in such a pampered society that people refuse to take any form of personal responsibility for their own actions.
While Sergeant Hackemer's story undoubtedly is a sad one, I think we draw the wrong conclusion of this particular event if we just say:
More staff-training is needed.
Another outcome we can make is just because you are a veteran does not give you the green light to be an asshole.
So, picking this up from reading other comments, imagine you’re working on a ride as a young teen, and this disabled vet doesn’t meet the requirements for the ride, unfortunately. Would you have the confidence to try and stop him despite the risk of possibly pissing him AND other people off? I probably wouldn’t. Really feel for the staff on this one.
I maybe personally wouldn’t but I’d immediately call a supervisor over. I definitely understand how it could be quite intimidating for a kid or young adult. As much as I think I would be intimidated by him I think I’d be more afraid to make the final decision on wether or not he rides so I’d definitely call a supervisor or superior. I don’t know what the staffing is like at Darien Lake so I guess I can’t say 100% that this is feasible but it should be.
Nope. I respect people in the military, but just the same as you and me. A lot of them are assholes because they feel like they’re entitled to whatever they want because of their service. They can be HORRIBLE. Now I would have stood up, but I am an extremely sensitive person and as a 16 year old, I know that I would have let him make me feel bad and scared and let him on. 🤷♀️ right or wrong is debatable but that’s what would happen over and over again in this scenario with most teenagers.
Right and they don’t wanna be labeled as prejudice it’s hard now a days
I think none of them were teens, but they were still young and 2 of them not Americans (that makes the whole situation even more difficult). But I would personally not start the ride before asking someone to come and give the green light. He was not tall enough (although apparently that was missed as no one measured him) and he didn't have two legs. There were two strikes... I'd try to reason with him and if he didn't understand, I would just wait for a superior to come.
Right. So then announce to the waiting crowd that the ride is being stopped to deal with an issue, apologize for the delay and call in a supervisor to deal with him.
This one has always bothered me. To me, it’s on the guest to have enough common sense to know that if you’re lacking legs, you can’t go on a ride that secures you by the legs and waist. It’s just good sense.
This is true, but you would hope that the attendants would notice that fact for him, considering it is their job
Totally agree. We are living in an age of total lack of accountability and consequent lack or responsibility. Everyone else is to blame, except the one who actually did it.
@@Ryies12 So the attendants are supposed to notice this fact but the man himself does not? What were they supposed do? Just casually walk up to him and say : " Hey sir, I don't know if you noticed but you don't seem to have legs, so therefore can't go on the ride." ?He must have know that there would be a quite few limitations due to the state of his physique. Why even attempt to go on such ride, especially after everything he endured during his life, and basically getting a second chance? And I'm not saying not to do any fun stuff ever, but why one of the most extreme and flat out threatening to your life and safety? At this point you're just asking for it. This gentleman's death was very unfortunate, but it's down to each and every one of us to determine the possible hazards and be wise about it. We all make mistakes but one would assume you try to be extra careful when facing a potentially fatal threat.
Not exactly the same but I had a fraud of a dentist get mad I didnt "brush" my teet to HIS standards so he missed a cavity that turned inyo a bigger issue. People can and will be jerks if any reason floats their boats.
All of them in yhis case were at "Fault" but if I was to say go on Ghost Rider at knots with my bad back and I get hurt? It my fault.
@@Subject_Keter I guess that dentist must have really pissed you off, so like you use any opportunity to vent about it, lol.
Love your channel, saves me a fortune on theme park trips as I show it to the kids who are now terrified of theme parks!
I have to say that even if he did not resist the staffs instructions not to ride and they were more passive, I would still take a close look at how management actually enforces park rules and if they back up or tend to hush down staff who try to enforce the rules. I just left a job with a lot of nice documentation about safety rules. But my attempts to enforce it were not met by support from my supervisors. They push the boundaries and discourage us from being careful. The culture is everything when it comes to health and safety on a job. I’m glad you discussed the situation that made the staff feel unsure about enforcing the rules. And besides inadequate training or reviews of training, you always have to look at if rules are actually being enforced in practice or if they’re just for show and staff is actively being discouraged and directed to cut certain corners. I left because I hated that whole culture. The fact that they had that attitude and tried to guilt me for frequently getting sick was the final straw
I grew up near Darian Lake and love the water park. This is probably one of the few times you have covered an accident at an amusement park that was NOT a case of park management ignoring maintenance/safety warnings until it was too late.
Edit: Okay, for my fellow locals, I'm from Clarence in Erie County.
Grew up about 30 minutes away from Darian went there a lot as a kid that was the only ride I wouldn't go on I'd pick the wooden one think it's called the python over the ride of steel any day
I saw the title of this and went "oh no I live near there" and yeah, the story always comes to mind when I go to the park
Well, no, there was definitely a safety regulation that was ignored.
@@buffspringtrap The wooden one sucked...I think the viper was the one that had a lot of loops
The Predator is the wooden one you guys. Gave me a headache everytime. But my first roller coaster.
If this is about the severely physically disabled veteran who fell off it's important to note that employees did tell him which rides were safe for disabled guests. He refused an information pamphlet about which rides were safe for physically disabled guests. There were signs posted on the ride itself that riders must have two legs to ride, which he either didn't see or ignored. The narrative that he wasn't warned by staff is a complete fabrication. If you would like to hear an accurate telling of this story Coaster College's video on the topic discusses a lot of misconceptions around this accident.
literally all of those points are addressed in the video.
@@scolipede491 I didn't watch bc I know of this and have heard it told many times, I just found the description/intro misleading
Many veterans return home psychologically damaged. War changes people. He may have lost some of his ability to rationally assess situations like the one that led to his death.
And I'm speaking as someone with diagnosed PTSD. Trauma ruins the brain in so many ways. My disability requires others to help me better assess situations. Even though I've been through 5+ years of intensive therapy I still need help. It is hard to rationalize things when your brain is literally missing neurological connections.
Especially since this was the first "normal" activity he's experienced since leaving treatment, I understand why he was upset to be told "no". His family didn't know any better either, and underpaid theme park employees cannot force people to follow rules.
Overall, the entire situation is tragic. Try to be more empathetic. Everyone was a victim in this story.
@@SprinkledFox I'm not at all trying to blame the victim of this accident, again only clarifying that the description has blatant misinformation in it, which isn't usually the point of this channel. I see how my original comment can be interpreted as 'vet was in the wrong, staff good' which was not at all my intention.
i've been to darien lake a dozen times (native new yorker!) i've also ridden this every time ive gone. i remember this case as well. the park attendees are definitely vigilant about this kind of thing and i agree with everyone saying they must have informed him he couldn't ride, no way they didnt notice the safety issue
I really appreciate how you talked about the young people who were attendants on the ride. I didn’t think about them in the way you did until you explained how it probably was for them dealing with it at the time. I feel for the attendants and the victim’s family. Never for these huge corporations who get away with this stuff
How nice of the world to blame the staff; can't speak ill of a dead veteran...seriously, if the ride keeps you safe with a lap bar, and you don't have a lap...it was totally on Mr. Hackemer to have the slightest bit of common sense, and not put ride operators in the position of having to remind him of such basic stuff. No one wants to say no to a guy in a wheelchair, so sometimes, guys in wheelchairs have to think about that.
Absolutely agree. Unacceptable to blame the park for his stupidity. He was responsible for his own safety as he should have understood his own limitations as an amputee.
It was his fault
Totally. He was offered information and refused to take it. He ignored park rules. He got on the ride knowing he shouldn't do it. As horrible as this was to his family, it was his fault.
Ima go out on a limb here and say that just about all involved lacked common sense from the staff to Mr. Hackemer, to his own family. What happened was tragic, but Jesus this was so preventable it hurts my head.
The MINUTE he sat in that car he HAD to have realized it was not going to hold him in. This guy... smh. Should have jumped right back out of the car. Just because you've served the military industrial complex doesn't make you RIGHT. OR above the rules.
Well, the rules of physics don't bend.
I always felt badly for his nephew. I couldn’t even imagine watching a family flying through the air.
Plus the attendants did question him and it turned into a huge fight.
I thought that too. That poor kid, he probably has PTSD from witnessing his uncle die in the fall. :(
I went to Six Flags in Texas with my family. Dispite buying season passes I told my wife afterward that we wouldn't be going back because dispite going to many amusement parks in my home state of Florida I did not feel safe at Six Flags. That summer a woman fell to her death on a coaster that had been newly refurbished.
Think of it this way...
How often did that ride operate and divide that with that fatality.
I know, it sounds cold and analytical but I'm saying it to make a point about the perceptions we often create out of fear.
A plane crash is usually 100% fatal to all passengers aboard. You have a plane that goes down and just like that 250 people are gone. It's an astronomical number but when one looks at all the commercial flights yearly, and the amount people transported in those flights, that number, though tragic (and the accident itself) is small thus the risks are quite slim and the claim that flying is safer than driving is mathematically correct.
Perception.
@@moonytheloony6516 listen dude. I have been to a lot of places and rode a lot of coasters. Generally I feel safe at most places I have been. But Six Flags didn't feel right to me and I always trust my instincts.
@@the_sixxness
You're missing out on fun, excitement, thrills and earth shattering anticipation...
I’ve ridden this thing probably a hundred times in my life and can definitely see why he flew out. You’re more than weightless at the top of those hills you’re being forced out of your seat
Sgt. had too much pride and not enough common sense. I get what he wanted and the dynamics of how it would be almost impossible for the attendants to challenge his wishes. He put himself and everyone else in a no win scenario. Yeah technically the park has some legal responsibility in this, but this is the same as someone not wearing a seatbelt and having a fatal accident that could have been avoided if belted in and then suing the car maker. Sad.
An amusement park assumes all legal responsibility for incidents such as these. Otherwise, there would be no need for an amusement park to come to a confidential financial settlement to resolve the matter.
But, you are right. A former army NCO ought to know how to conduct himself in these settings, to avoid these disastrous outcomes from the outset. A more diligent double amputee would carefully and seriously research which rides can safely be ridden, and, which rides are just not appropriate for one with a significant disability.
The tragedy was totally avoidable.
period. I am really trying to feel compassion here...but this is a case of too much pride.
Agreed. It’s mentioned a few times that he refused assistance from the park and operators.
You can’t expect a 19 year old kid to feel comfortable standing up to a disabled war vet who has already told you off
I also feel if he had read the pamphlet on what rides he could get on, this might not have happened. He was offered one, but said he already had one. I am disabled myself. I look at the ride guidelines and if it says anything about neck and back injuries, I don’t go in the ride. I take responsibility for my owe well being. I don’t rely on someone else. I don’t trust people to know everything. Now if the ride says it is safe and I ride it and I got injured or died, then I or my family, would sue the pants off of them.
@@solisinvictus4238 The amusement park management were too weak and lacking emotional conviction when enforcing ride safety policies. Ride safety guides and warning signs mean absolutely nothing when the staffers and management at the ride are too timid and lacking emotional maturity to resolutely enforce the ride rules and policies. But, when the ride attendants are mostly teenagers, what does one expect?
I was there the day this happened! A local reporter tried to talk to us to see what had happened but we were shooed away by my mother. We then went home to discover that one of my sister's friends had been killed in a hit and run a few hours earlier. Unimaginably wild day.
I like these channels that give trustworthy sources to their stories! Subscribed immediately!
Considering the number of times in other professions that I or other coworkers were hesitant to enforce rules because 95% of the time trying to results in a half hour of the person screaming at the top of their lungs at you, then having your manager come up and decide to "make an exception this once" to make the customer happy despite them blatantly being in the wrong... Yeah, I can easily see a gaggle of teenagers not wanting to go through that, especially with the added stress of it looking like you're "picking on the disabled person".
I have a Ride of Steel story! I live right near Darien Lake, and I remember when this happened...I’ve ridden it lots of times since, but I’ve gotten more and more nervous over time (not their fault, just me getting older, I think). The last time I tried to ride it, several years ago, I was in a group of three, and I was the odd one who was going to ride alone. A very drunk man was in line behind me being creepy, standing close and taking selfies angled to get me in them. I was so uncomfortable, and I told the girls I was with, “if he tries to sit next to me I’m not even going to ride,” and sure enough when it was our turn he crowded me so that I had to sit in the far seat and he could sit next to me, so I got up and walked right out the exit line without riding. I was so upset, having waited in line for so long in the heat. I waited at the exit for the rest of my group. Almost as soon as the ride started, right as they were cresting the first hill, there was a sudden downpour...my friends got totally blasted by the rain and soaked. The ride obviously doesn’t run in the rain for a reason, and when the ride ended, the brakes couldn’t quite grab the slick tracks enough and the train slid a little bit past the end position, which meant the restraints couldn’t release. So my friends were stuck on the ride until the attendants could get it into the correct position to allow their restraints to release. And the drunk man who I would have been riding with if I hadn’t left went completely nuts, screaming and swearing and flailing around and my friends were so freaked out by him (he was in the seats directly behind them) that one of them ended up panicking and crying, and in the end I’m just really grateful I didn’t ride next to him because I would have been stuck there. Obviously, the rain shut down pretty much the whole park and they gave us vouchers to come back another day. Which we did!
I'm glad you followed your instinct!
i remember being a tiny underfed kid who had a lot of issues with not being the right size/weight for rides and so i would end up trying my best to pretend to be bigger than i was to sneak onto them. i remember a time on the tower of terror at disneyland during the freefall my dad and a stranger had to pull me down as i lifted out of my seat. that instance didn't bother me because a foot drop didn't hurt very much and it was kinda fun anyways. i was never afraid of rollercosters until at a seasonal fair i was upside down 100ft in the air and feeling myself move through the chest restraints. it was genuinely painful holding on and i think i only barely did it. i didn't have the most attentive parents so till this day no one really knows about how i felt clinging to bars too large for me knowing if i gave into how much it hurt i'd die. anyways, now you do
I grew up 15 minutes from darien lake. As soon as we heard about this, no one could even believe he was let on the ride. Or got in the seat and decided to stay on the roller coaster. The restraint bar is literally on your hip. Your legs keep you in. There is only a restraint bar, nothing else. It is almost impossible to not fall out if you don’t have legs, let alone are missing a hip. The part that he fell off the ride during is near the end, and if you are a small person you end up bouncing around in your seat a little and you can feel the strong force trying to take you upwards. This is just unbelievable that something preventable like this would have happened. But, there are mostly kids working the rides at this park. I have heard that this man bullied his way onto the ride. It is the only logical explanation. The kids working the rides and people who frequent darien lake know very well about how the restraints work. Part of the ride being so thrilling is that you feel like you should have more than just a lap bar holding you in. So yeah, this was preventable completely.
It wasn't really about his height. The seatbelt and restraints clamp onto your waist and legs. Without legs you can slide out of the restraints. He would need a restraint that went over your shoulders.
This would be a good video for ride attendants to watch. It's easy to forget the reality of how dangerous roller coasters can be when they've run without issue for so long.
That's a good point! They're very safe, but that's when operated and ridden as designed, complacency can still kill even though modern coasters tend to try to have control logic that fails safe or catches mistakes.
Adds a lot to the thrill and risk factors doesn't it?
In IT we call it "kicking out the plug." If you have no issues for a long time, then why does the company need such an expensive IT staff? Sometimes you have to let something fail to remind them that you are necessary.
or show it to guests in the lineup lol
I mean the length a ride operates without incident is typically a good thing. Look at every coaster by B&M, some of those have been running since the early 90’s and that company has had zero accidents with any of their coasters, and they hardly ever break down
I remember growing up going to this amusement park and hearing the story at the age of 9. It scared all of us, none of us knew if it was true but , when we did find the truth out it made the ride more scary.
I was in 3rd grade when this happened and I lived about an hour from Darien Lake and it was all people could talk about for what seemed like months. I heard so many different rumors about this at the time. Crazy.
As someone who used to work rides at Kings Island, it's interesting to have it pointed out how another park handles prep for guests with disabilities. At Kings Island, at least when I worked there almost ten years ago, guests would go to a desk at the front and answer some questions, typically about mobility, limb control, mental capacity, etc. and then be given a filled out form (either in pink or green, which would determine whether they go through the line or go up the exit). The form had checks next to each ride that was safe for them to ride so they and ride attendants would know ahead of time and would allow for speedier, more consistent work. It would also make things smoother for the guest as they wouldn't have to go through a process they might feel embarrassed having to do at each ride. If a guest came to our ride who was unable to, we would recommend another ride that was available to them that was nearby. Granted, they would have to get a new form every time they came to the park, but that was to ensure there wasn't a change in what they could and couldn't do since their last visit that could put them in danger on a ride they were previously safe on.
At the time, it felt like a fairly standard system and I always thought every park had this sort of thing in place, if not, something better.
That sounds like a very good system
I know his disability was visible, but how did the park you worked at identify people who required this service? Did they ask upfront? Because if they didn't, how would you enforce it?
@@rachelstratman1405 This type of assistance is for those with physical disabilities which would be readily apparent to the ride operators even if the guest chose not to use the form. The form just made the process more streamlined.
I don't know how it worked for staff at admissions, it's possible they would simply recommend stopping at the desk to make their day easier. And they would likely only bring it up to those who asked or those with very obvious disabilities such as being in wheelchairs, using crutches (a pink form could be used for someone with a cast so they know which rides are available, but they may not need to go up the exit if it's something like an arm cast), or have family/friends helping them with most activities. Other than that, I'm guessing guests would also look up the service beforehand on the website.
It is also available for those with mental disabilities such as those with lower-functioning autism as they wouldn't be able to wait in long lines and similar instances. It's also available for those with service animals (although, obviously, the animal cannot ride, so one guest tends to stay with it while the rest of the group rides, then they switch when they come back around).
And, yes, it can be done without the form to a degree, but that's typically because the guest was unaware of the service and were still capable of getting up and down stairs. We would have to make an assessment for our ride upon their arrival based on our training, but we'd also let them know about the service so they wouldn't have to keep doing that at most larger rides. If they tried to come up through the exit without a form, we would either tell them of the service and they'd go get a form or we would call an area supervisor out to get that sorted out there (which tended to happen more on really busy days where it might be hard for them to get back to admissions). I'd say 98% of the guests I encountered already had a form and were good to go.
the lesson i've learnt from watching countless of this so called 'documentary' thing, is to always read the comments, there will always someone or a group of people that experienced the event first hand that will tell us the actual truth, instead of what being 'officially reported' by media etc ugh sucks that they blamed the staff entirely
Yeah this video was terrible
@@AlexMoreno-zj7po yeah he needs to fix it. It will tarnish the channel for sure.
agreed. it's been 2 months+ and nothing has been changed or addressed. thank goodness I read the comments or else I'd blame the staff too. obviously making mistakes is okay, it's hard to get every bit of information about a story. but he had to say that the staff had "no involvement" around 10 times even though there are numerous counts, both official and unofficial, that the staff *did* try to stop him. the staff are not the ones to blame. it's actually not that hard to edit a youtube video after it was posted to add a disclaimer in the beginning. :/
Because a couple of random people told you? No wonder why we have such a big problem with fake news!
@@rennie5693 I keep hearing of these accounts, but when people are asked to pull up a source, there's nothing
Oh shit. I've been to that amusement park a couple of times. I went on a haunted house ride there once when I was like. Maybe 5? It was me and a friend. The ride operator was drunk. He forgot we were inside the haunted house. He turned the ride off before our cart exited... Needless to say, my mom was furious. I have this incredibly vivid memory of being in the middle of a haunted house as a child, and then pitch black. No sound. It was exactly as terrifying as you can imagine. We decided to get out of the cart, because nothing was happening and it was pitch black inside of a haunted house lol. We ended up tripping on the tracks that the carts rode on and I remember that both of us were covered in black grease by the time we got out. Eventually, the ride turned back on. I will never forget the sight of the cart going through the doors at the exit, suddenly allowing the daylight to pour in. We knew where to go. And we went.
I’ve ridden this many times, well aware of this story, and every time we come around that section it always gives me chills. I’ve been waiting for a video to be made on this ride
Edit: loved reading the stories and comments made by people who live near Darien Lake! Hiiii :)
It would make me smile every time I passed that section. Another dead US terrorist soldier.
I live 20 minutes away from this park and they have season passes which pay for themselves if you go just twice. So I spent a lot of time here growing up. To get over my fear of roller coasters the ride of steel was the first one I rode back in 2001. Absolutely loved it. It’s more uncomfortable now with the added safety measures but I wanted to add that the attendants actually did stop him from getting on at first but he made a scene and threatened to sue the park for discrimination.
Yup I knew people who worked there and they said he kept saying he was a war hero and forced his way on.
I live close to it too like around 45 minutes
And yet in multiple retellings of this tragedy that part is left out. WTF??
While I do understand the vet for wanting to be treated like a "normal" human being, he clearly should not have been let in. Today, the family would not win a court case IMHO because there would be footage available from 46 angles and sound recording of him bullying his way to the ride. Of course it's tragical. But who in their right mind expected a 20 year old to stand in the way of a 40-ish combat veteran? Frankly, if you are warned and there are signs then if you enter it should be your responsibility from that point. You WANTED it.
I think its very shameful of the family to have sued the park when they knew what actually happened. Guess belligerance runs in their blood.
I don't get why they didn't halt the ride and call a supervisor to deal with him.
Dude, your channel is one of the only few things on YT that I watch in 1.0x speed. Your storytelling is just too great to skim over. Cheers! :)
Once, my brother and I were on an older rollercoaster. He was, at the time, tiny and weighed nothing. While on the rollercoaster, our lap bar started being weird, and his seatbelt was very loose. I grabbed either end of the cart and basically held on to both sides to keep us, especially him, in the ride and not in the air. Kid was getting serious height, like a possibility of flying out kind of height. When we tried to exit the cart at the end of the ride, the loose lap belt would not unlock fully and we were stuck there for an extra 5 minutes as the teen workers tried desperately to get us out. Never was a big fan of rides, that kind of sealed the deal.
Damn that's super scary. I agree with you.. rides are just not worth it. Too much can go wrong
Normally when you cover amusement park accidents, it’s shown to be the negligence of the park itself. However: as soon as you had a photo of the gentleman @ 4:03 flash on the screen I literally did a face palm. What the hell did he think was going to happen?! Common sense must come into play when you’re dealing with your own safety, no matter how much you respect a can-do attitude. Although it’s a terrible thing, a lawsuit here wasn’t warranted.
I agree. There was definitely fault from both sides not just the park
Especially since there were signs at the ride and in the booklet the man allegedly had which stated the safety precautions.
@@mrdth1012 But the family wanted money. It was all about the money.
Agreed
I was in the jury pool for a guy suing Six Flags. He dressed slovenly (which screamed this is about $$) and was obviously obese and could tell that he probably shouldn't have been on that ride. When asked about riding coasters most of the pool was like "you still need to have common sense."
I don't know what happened in that case (they seated the jury before I got questioned) but I could definitely tell the guy had an uphill battle ahead of him.
I agree. You have to be responsible for your own actions. I don’t know why he thought it was a good idea to go on that ride. The poor nephew must’ve been traumatized.
Being an ex ride operator while growing up, I can safely say that it's a difficult job that often goes by unnoticed. Parents especially can be extremely rude and uncaring, because I guess when they're on vacation they're allowed to leave basic human decency at the park entrance. Due to this, most just kinda go about our business until it becomes monotonous. So some mental fatigue absolutely sets in. Then again, they aren't hiring engineers to run these rides. They're hiring late teens, early 20s people and paying barely more than minimum wage, so it's not like the financial incentive is there. If they hired enough people with proper training and paid them well enough to care more, park tickets would cost WAY more than they already do, and I'm sure wouldn't bring in as much money. So, kinda a bad situation in all areas. Anyway, ill get off my soap box lol great video as always!
Parents on vacation are the worst, I feel like they're stressed/resentful because they have to spend their whole vacation taking care of the kids and can't really enjoy themselves. Especially when they bring babies for some reason.
You can't pay people enough to care. EITHER YOU HAVE A CARING HEART OR YOU DON'T.
@@duradim1 It's not about not caring about human life, it's a "I don't get paid enough to exert my mental health arguing with entitled assholes and being berated for it" situation
I would think that instead if they invested in having mangers who are well paid and have experience and authority in human confrontation as well as policy would have been better. Unfortunately those jobs like you said will be monotonous and a constant balancing act low-level employees have to deal with no matter what. But if there is no hesitation for them to call a higher up with authority and knowledge to handle a rare situation like this it will keep the park out of trouble, higher employee morale, and not a huge cost to front.
@@duradim1 yeah no I want a living wage, thanks :)
I remember this incident quite well. I grew up 20 minutes from the part and rode that coaster often. So tragic
As a disabled person and reading the comments covering the way this man actually behaved, it is not discrimination if it is a rule to keep you from dying or being seriously harmed. His behavior screams of someone who does not understand that disability does, in fact, mean there are things you /cannot do/. The narrative of "disabled people can do anything", while well intentioned, is not true and lets people in denial of their disability put themselves in extremely dangerous situations to prove a point. Disabled people can do anything in terms of living fulfilling lives, not defy the laws of physics and riding a rollercoaster /clearly/ identified as unsafe for you. I do feel bad that someone lost their life, but if he harassed workers who were basically children into letting him on despite their better judgement, then he is the dumbass who ignored the warning label.
The man threatened to sue for discrimination if they didn't let him on when they tried to stop him. He sure didn't deserve to die, but he definitely takes some of the blame.