A woman was injured after riding the theme park's new dual-launch coaster
Universal Orlando Resort has been hit with a negligence suit after a woman was injured while riding the Stardust Racers dual-launch coaster at its new theme park Epic Universe, reported the Associated Press.
Sandi Streets filed the suit in Orlando state court, claiming that she suffered disability, medical care expenses, loss of the ability to work, and an exacerbation of a preexisting condition. She had gone on the ride after being invited to the theme park a few weeks before its public opening in May.
Streets alleged that her head was improperly restrained during the ride, which reaches a maximum speed of 62 mph (100 kph). Her head was violently shaken and hit her seat’s headrest, resulting in permanent injury.
She claimed in the suit that she was not adequately informed about the “unsafe and unreasonably dangerous condition” of the roller coaster. Nicholas Spetsas, Streets’ attorney, did not immediately respond to a request for further details about Streets’ injury, AP News said; Universal also did not respond to a request for comment.
Days before the suit was filed, Kevin Rodriguez Zavala was unresponsive after going on the same ride. He was pronounced dead at a hospital, and medical examiner Joshua Stephany found that he had sustained blunt impact injuries. The death was ruled an accident, AP News reported.
Universal Orlando Resort’s president, Karen Irwin, informed workers in a note that per internal findings, ride systems’ functions were normal, equipment intact, and proper procedures followed. Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services investigators corroborated the findings.
The lawyers for Zavala’s family challenged the findings; nonetheless, the family has yet to file a suit.
The Epic Universe theme park is the first major traditional theme park to open in the state since Universal Islands of Adventure in 1999. The largest theme parks in Florida are exempted from undergoing state safety inspections; instead, the parks inspect themselves and implement their own protocols. Nonetheless, they must report injuries or deaths to the state.
