TORONTO – A teenager died Monday after being thrown from a roller coaster at a theme park in Spain.
The unnamed 18-year-old suffered multiple fractures and head wounds after he was reportedly flung from of his seat when his harness failed during the ‘Inferno’ ride Monday afternoon.
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The young man reportedly died of his injuries inside the ambulance en route to hospital.
Catalan for ‘hell,’ the Inferno roller coaster was unveiled in 2007 at the Terra Mitica theme park in Benidorm, a coastal town in Spain. The ride includes 360-degree turns and can reach more than 65 km/h.
Police said the victim was from Iceland and was visiting Spain on holiday with his parents and a friend.
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“We turned around and saw a group of people shouting ‘drop, drop’ and pointing,” said one witness. “Then it became apparent what happened and everyone was in shock.
“We saw the teenager’s family and they were obviously distraught.”
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The park posted a statement on its website saying the cause of the accident is currently unknown and that it had an unblemished safety record.
Roller coaster fatalities are extremely rare. According to the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, the odds of dying on a roller coaster are 1 in 300 million.
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