Several injured at UK theme park after incident on drop tower

Ffion Lewis & Jamie Brassington
·2-min read
A number of people have been injured after an incident at Oakwood Theme Park involving a drop tower ride
-Credit: (Image: Jonathan Myers)


A number of people were injured following an incident on a ride at a UK theme park. An 'emergency stop' took place on the Bounce ride at Oakwood Theme Park in Wales on July 10.

Riders claimed the ride dropped quickly to the ground due to the stop. Bounce is a drop tower-style ride which re-opened in 2022 after closing in 2016, reports MirrorOnline.

Guests are taken some 45m into air before being dropped back down to earth and bouncing back upwards again. It is a "gravity-defying, stomach-lurching shot ‘n’ drop tower ride", according to the theme park's website.

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There were an estimated 20 people on the ride when it "fell to the floor without slowing down", according to a guest onboard on Wednesday. The ride "went up and down a few times" before it "fell quickly to the ground from about halfway up the tower", said the witness, as school-age children were "screaming and crying".

The guest, who did not want to be named, claimed around eight people received first aid treatment on site while four others visited hospital for further treatment. Oakwood Theme Park confirmed they were aware of the incident and confirmed the ride would remain closed while they consulted the ride manufacturer. The park said that the incident arose as a result of a "programmed Emergency Stop Procedure".

Describing the incident, the park guest claimed the way the incident was handled was "awful", and claimed they only stopped and helped people who "complained of pain or anything wrong". They added: "There have been no apologies from the park, they only gave information for guest relations because we asked for it to take it further after the fact we were told no management was available."

A Spokesperson for Oakwood Theme Park said: “During operation today, our drop tower ride Bounce experienced a programmed Emergency Stop Procedure in response to the ride drop height during a guest cycle. The stoppage which resulted in the passenger gondola stopping in the ride brakes was attended to by our park team and the ride was lowered to the ground where guests were able to disembark.

"A number of guests reported minor lower back pain immediately after the occurrence and were attended to by our onsite team of First Aiders, where assistance was provided. One group sought additional treatment locally, whilst others continued their day at the park. Bounce will remain closed whilst we consult with the ride manufacturer.”

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