Yahoo News The Smiler ride at Alton Towers breaks down with riders on board amid heatwave
![Theme park riders were left hanging in the air for 20 minutes on Tuesday when The Smiler ride at Alton Towers broke down.Eyewitnesses said the rollercoaster halted around 100 feet from the ground, amid a heatwave which saw parts of the UK exceed 30C.Video footage showed several people left stranded on board the paused ride.Their carriage eventually returned to the attraction’s platform at 6pm.The Smiler, like many rollercoasters, has sensors along the length of its track.These devices can halt the ride as a precaution if they sense anything is wrong.“We apologise to all guests affected by the stoppage on The Smiler late [Tuesday] afternoon,” an Alton Towers spokesperson said. “Our guest relations team have spoken to everyone on board to offer return tickets to the park as compensation for the inconvenience.“Our technical team are working to reset the ride this evening so this should not affect guests visiting the park tomorrow.”The Smiler previously made headlines in 2015, after a crash on the rollercoaster left five people seriously injured, including two teenage girls who both required leg amputations.The collision occurred when a fully loaded carriage, carrying 16 people, crashed into an empty, stationary car at 90mph.Following the crash, it took up to five hours for all the passengers to be freed from the wreckage.Merlin Attractions, the theme park’s operator, was fined £5m after admitting that health and safety breaches had led to the crash.Additional reporting by agencies](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/EiqSuV1ZSrcR6WSgvEHnIA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTcyMA--/https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_independent_577/d436a24b4972f784b3468cf5344e3f85)
![Theme park riders were left hanging in the air for 20 minutes on Tuesday when The Smiler ride at Alton Towers broke down.Eyewitnesses said the rollercoaster halted around 100 feet from the ground, amid a heatwave which saw parts of the UK exceed 30C.Video footage showed several people left stranded on board the paused ride.Their carriage eventually returned to the attraction’s platform at 6pm.The Smiler, like many rollercoasters, has sensors along the length of its track.These devices can halt the ride as a precaution if they sense anything is wrong.“We apologise to all guests affected by the stoppage on The Smiler late [Tuesday] afternoon,” an Alton Towers spokesperson said. “Our guest relations team have spoken to everyone on board to offer return tickets to the park as compensation for the inconvenience.“Our technical team are working to reset the ride this evening so this should not affect guests visiting the park tomorrow.”The Smiler previously made headlines in 2015, after a crash on the rollercoaster left five people seriously injured, including two teenage girls who both required leg amputations.The collision occurred when a fully loaded carriage, carrying 16 people, crashed into an empty, stationary car at 90mph.Following the crash, it took up to five hours for all the passengers to be freed from the wreckage.Merlin Attractions, the theme park’s operator, was fined £5m after admitting that health and safety breaches had led to the crash.Additional reporting by agencies](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/28hWwstb55TD_Or6tmbCRQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTcyMA--/https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_independent_577/1157e7c8b4c5342c67eb199cd471c654)
Theme park riders were left hanging in the air for 20 minutes on Tuesday when The Smiler ride at Alton Towers broke down.
Eyewitnesses said the rollercoaster halted around 100 feet from the ground, amid a heatwave which saw parts of the UK exceed 30C.
Video footage showed several people left stranded on board the paused ride.
Their carriage eventually returned to the attraction’s platform at 6pm.
The Smiler, like many rollercoasters, has sensors along the length of its track.
These devices can halt the ride as a precaution if they sense anything is wrong.
“We apologise to all guests affected by the stoppage on The Smiler late [Tuesday] afternoon,” an Alton Towers spokesperson said.
“Our guest relations team have spoken to everyone on board to offer return tickets to the park as compensation for the inconvenience.
“Our technical team are working to reset the ride this evening so this should not affect guests visiting the park tomorrow.”
The Smiler previously made headlines in 2015, after a crash on the rollercoaster left five people seriously injured, including two teenage girls who both required leg amputations.
The collision occurred when a fully loaded carriage, carrying 16 people, crashed into an empty, stationary car at 90mph.
Following the crash, it took up to five hours for all the passengers to be freed from the wreckage.
Merlin Attractions, the theme park’s operator, was fined £5m after admitting that health and safety breaches had led to the crash.
Additional reporting by agencies
