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King’s Dominion Water Ride Injury Raises New Concerns about Parks

Aerial view of a water park

Serious injuries and even deaths on water rides have made headlines over the last few months. Now a King’s Dominion water ride injury has raised further questions about these activities.

It should have been a fun Fourth of July day out for a Virginia couple at the park near Richmond.

But things went badly wrong for Christina Orebaugh when she sustained a serious injury, reported WAVY.com.

The media report on the King’s Dominion water ride injury revealed something went badly wrong on the Tornado water slide at the theme park.

The ride was reported to be closed while park officials tried to find out what happened.

Orebaugh went on to social media, detailing the terrible accident on Facebook. The post asking for prayers for his wife received thousands of comments and shares.

Orebaugh explained the couple’s tube was riding up the side of a 65-foot funnel when it abruptly flipped. Christina was thrown into the air and landed hard on her head and shoulder, according to reports.

She was subsequently hospitalized at VCU Medical Center with a broken shoulder, foot and collarbone. She is also reported to have a concussion and multiple staples in her head to help a gash heal.

To add insult to injury, Steve Orebaugh claimed the lifeguards were paying little attention and he was forced to swim to his unconscious wife to ensure she didn’t drown.

The Tornado has been at King’s Dominion since 2007.

King’s Dominion issued a statement saying lifeguards were at their posted position and immediately responded to the incident along with medical staff.

The spokesperson for King’s Dominion said:

“The safety of our guests and staff is always our number one priority and the ride remains closed at this time while park officials conduct an investigation.”

King’s Dominion Water Park Ride Injury Follows Other Serious Issues

A spate of serious issues at water parks have been reported in recent months. Last year, a 10-year-old boy was killed on an extreme water park ride in Kansas.

In the wake of this terrible incident, a $20 million wrongful death settlement was reached with the family of the deceased boy.

In May, a boy slid off a water park ride in California and ended on the concrete. The accident happened at a new water park. Fortunately, he was not badly injured.

Rides at water parks have become increasingly extreme. We are concerned park operators are sacrificing safety in favor of thrill seeking.

Our thoughts are with Christina Orebaugh and her family. We hope she makes a speedy recovery.

At Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers, we have a team that deals with accidents at businesses. Some injury attorneys do not do this difficult work. Please call us for a free consultation at (757) 333-3333.

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