Florida Senator calls for the permanent closure of Orlando drop tower ride where teen died
A Florida Senator is calling for the permanent closure of the Orlando from which a 14-year-old boy fell last week, resulting in his death, according to Click Orlando.
Senator Randolph Bracy (D) wrote a letter to the Commissioner of the State of of Agriculture and , Nikki Fried, urging the agency to act swiftly in making the current temporary closure of the tower drop at on in Orlando a permanent closure.
Last Thursday, 14-year-old fell from his seat on the from a height of more than 400 feet, resulting in his death. Since , state inspectors from the of Agriculture and (FDACS) have been at , inspecting the , owned by , and talking to witnesses and employees in an effort to determine what could have caused the young teen to from his seat on the and hundreds of feet to his death.
Senator Bracy’s letter called ‘s death “premature,” and an “unconscionable and avoidable tragedy,” and urged the state agency to shut down the for good.
RELATED: There are NO SEATBELTS on the Orlando drop tower ride where teen fell, died last week
The Senator’s letter further called on the of Agriculture and to re-inspect rides throughout the Sunshine State in the name of safety. Bracy also called for the agency to implement minimum requirements for fixed amusement parks related to safety and to require secondary restraints, which can serve as backups if the primary safety restraints fail, or in the case of operator error.
Bracy further asked that these new measures be implemented “immediately.”
“I urge the Department to reexamine and implement minimum safety requirements for fixed amusement parks, implement secondary or additional safety restraints to quickly respond to mechanical and human errors, and require more robust peer training and safety protocols to increase accountability by operators. I urge that these measures be implemented immediately and I also request that the Department close the permanently.”
According to state laws, theme parks and amusement parks in Florida that employ 1,000 workers or fewer must have FDACS inspections on their respective rides twice a year. Larger theme parks and theme park resorts like the Walt Resort, Universal Studios Orlando, and Sea World Orlando, which employ more than 1,000 people may self-inspect their rides. They are then required to submit accident and injury reports for each , should there be any.
Bracy concluded his letter by calling the death of avoidable.
“No human being should experience the plight of tragedy that could have been avoided by ensuring our amusement parks are operating at the highest levels of safety and care. I greatly appreciate your attention and consideration to this matter.”
The young boy’s family has also demanded the destruction of the . Members of ‘s family have said they will stay at “from sunup to sundown” if need be until the is taken down.
