Business & Tech
Test Dummies Fly Off Ocean City Roller Coaster, Crash Into Hotel
Two dummies leaked and shrunk before flying off the GaleForce. Castaway Cove's VP said they're looking into using more durable dummies.
OCEAN CITY, N.J. — Test dummies flew out of Castaway Cove's GaleForce Roller Coaster on April 13 and landed on a nearby roof. Park officials said the ride is safe, and the water-based dummies simply leaked and shrunk.
A deflated dummy landed on the Ebb Tide Suites' roof during the test run. Only plywood and roof shingles were damaged and repaired within an hour, according to park Vice President Brian Hartley.
"When the ride came back in, they checked all the safety harnesses," Hartley told Patch. "Everything was in the exact same position, still locked. It’s just the bags shrunk down like a popped balloon. It goes from large and filled to pretty much nothing."
Find out what's happening in Ocean Cityfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
No one was injured. The park checked all their safety harnesses and found they were still in place and locked in, Hartley said. But they might more durable dummies in the future.
"We would look into possibly instead of a bag-type water dummy into a more secure, harder plastic that’s not going to pop," Hartley said.
Find out what's happening in Ocean Cityfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The rollercoaster undergoes 15 to 13 test rides per morning, as well as monthly and annual inspections, Hartley said. There's no way of knowing exactly when the dummies broke and leaked, he said. Hartley describes them as an "inflatable raft-type material."
"We think it was probably while it was on there," Hartley said. "They put the bags in, they fill them and they just keep running it and running it and running it. So at some point, it must have created a tear or leak at the stem where the plug is and leaked out."
The GaleForce Roller Coaster is 125 feet tall and requires patrons to stand four feet tall to ride, according to Castaway Cove. The park introduced the rollercoaster in summer 2016.
Watch video of the roller coaster below:
Click here to get Patch email notifications on this or other local news articles or get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our app. Download here. Follow Ocean City Patch on Facebook. Have a news tip? Email josh.bakan@patch.com.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
