Staffordshire theme park, Alton Towers, have announced that the accident that occurred on 2 June of this year, seriously injuring several people, was due to human error.  The park confirmed that staff had misunderstood a shutdown message and restarted the ride, causing the carriages to collide with stationary carriages on the track.  It has been confirmed that there were absolutely no mechanical or technical issues with the ride.

16 people were seriously injured, 2 of whom had legs amputated, when the Smiler ride crashed into an empty carriage.  Leah Washington, 17, from Barnsley, had her leg amputated and her boyfriend Joe Pugh, 18, had his knees shattered.  Victoria Balch, 20, from Lancashire, underwent 6 rounds of surgery in an attempt to save her leg before the decision was made to amputate.  27 year-old Daniel Thorpe, from Buxton in Derbyshire, suffered serious leg injuries and a collapsed lung.

‘Revenues falling by 11.4%’

The owners of Alton Towers, Merlin Entertainment, have confirmed that the 16 injured will receive compensation.  They have also confirmed that measures have been taken internally to insure that errors cannot happen again.  An extra level of authorisation has been put in place to avoid security overrides with only senior members of staff being permitted to make the decision.  They have stated that the necessary HR procedures have been taken to deal with the members of staff who caused the accident, but have opted to keep the results a private matter.

Visitor numbers to the park have decreased considerably since the crash, with revenues falling by 11.4%.  The company has since restructured and is hoping that numbers will improve.

The Smiler, which has been closed since the crash, is due to reopen next year.

If you have suffered an injury in a public place, and are looking to claim compensation, please contact us.