Credit: Grona LundTragedy struck the famous Grona Lund Amusement Park in Central Stockholm, Sweden, when a roller coaster accident caused several passengers to be injured and one to lose their life.
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Grona Lund is the oldest Amusement Park in Sweden and one of the oldest in the entire world. Located right on the sea, Grona Lund is famous for its star-studded concerts, led by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Dua Lipa, and “Weird Al” Yankovic, as well as its many rides. The Park boasts several thrilling roller coasters, including Monster, Insane, and Jetline.
Part of what makes roller coasters so exciting is the illusion of danger. Despite being flipped upside down and plunging hundreds of feet, the passengers are never supposed to be in danger. Unfortunately, accidents do still happen. This was the case today with Jetline when a train derailment left at least seven passengers injured and one dead.
Roller Coaster Derailment Was “Tragic and Shocking”
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Originally built in 1988, Jetline is one of Grona Lund’s most famous roller coasters, mainly due to its iconic curved lift hill. But after the events on June 25, 2023, it will have a more tragic reputation.
One of the trains partially came off the roller coaster track during a steep turn, enough so that many of the fourteen passengers fell out. This includes a 35-year-old woman who fell to her death. Three more passengers are said to be seriously injured, and three children with minor injuries were rushed to a nearby children’s hospital.
Witnesses claim to have seen the wheels that came off the car, causing the derailment.
Annika Troselius, the Park’s information manager, told Aftonbladet, “We don’t know how it could have happened. As it stands now, it appears that the train on the roller coaster has partially come off the rails causing several people to fall out of the carriage.”
She continued, “Safety is the most important thing we have to work with. This is incredibly shocking to us and something we really need to get to the bottom of. It’s incredibly tragic, the worst thing I’ve been through. That someone should die is terrible.”
Troselius then announced that Grona Lund would be closed. “We will not open until we get to the bottom of it. We are not even currently talking about opening again.” The press spokesperson for the Stockholm Police supported this statement, saying, “We are talking to people who have been witnesses to the incident; it is part of our ongoing investigative work.”
Stay tuned here for more details on this story as they become available.