In the wake of a recent fatal accident on a ride at an Ohio amusement park, Playland is temporarily shut down one of its attractions on Thursday made by the same manufacturer.
Playland spokesperson Laura Ballance said “The Beast” is being taken offline temporarily out of an abundance of caution, while staff conduct supplemental testing.
The ride was re-opened on Friday.
“The Beast” is made by KMG, the same manufacturer that built the “Fireball,” an Ohio State Fair ride that failed on Wednesday, killing one person and injuring seven others.
LISTEN: PNE-Playland spokesperson Laura Ballance on shutting down The Beast
“Our ride, although made by the same manufacturer, is quite different than the one in question,” said Ballance.
“Ours is a new ride, it was purchased new from the manufacturer, it was shipped here to Playland, and it was assembled with our ride technicians in conjunction with the actual manufacturers themselves.”
WATCH: How Playland safety tests their stomach-turning rides
The Beast has been in operation at Playland for three seasons, and is a permanent attraction.
Balance said that’s a key difference from the ride that failed in Ohio, which travels from fair to fair.
“So by its very nature, travelling rides are assembled, operated, disassembled, shipped, and then assembled again,” Ballance said.
Playland rides get an annual inspection from the BC Safety Authority, along with inspections from two independent ride safety experts twice each season, Ballance said. She added that Playland staff also inspect them twice each day.
Ballance said there’s no timeline on getting the ride back up, and that staff won’t give the green light until they’re sure it’s safe.
“The amusement industry is a very close knit one and so we feel very sad today that they’re going through this.”
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