Credit: WhiteWater WorldA major incident at a popular water park saw a young female Guest lose half a liter of blood.
Like theme parks, water parks are designed to give Guests a thrill – but in the safest way possible. Waterslides, attractions, and pools are typically all strictly monitored by lifeguards and Park employees to ensure Guests have a fun, risk-free experience.
However, accidents can – and do – occur. Over the years, we’ve seen a Guest cut their foot open on a waterslide at Disney’s Boardwalk Inn at Walt Disney World Resort, while Universal Orlando Resort has also seen its fair share of accident reports at its Volcano Bay water park over the years.
In February, we also reported on a terrifying incident at DreamWorks Water Park in which a fake helicopter fell from the ceiling into the pool occupied by Guests.
Now, a lawsuit has been filed that reveals an even scarier accident at a water park in Australia. WhiteWater World water park – located on Australia’s Gold Coast as a part of Dreamworld – is being sued for more than AUD $1 million after an eight-year-old girl allegedly suffered serious internal injuries on a water slide in November 2020.
News.com.au reports that the girl – who heralds from Logan – apparently lost half a liter of blood after forcefully hitting the water at the end of the Fully 6 water slide, despite riding the slide on her back with her legs crossed as typically instructed by water slide attendants. However, her legs became uncrossed during the slide due to “the forces encountered by her body.”
“Due to her legs becoming uncrossed … [the girl] made a forceful impact with the water, resulting in water entering her body at force, causing a significant tear or rupture of her vaginal wall and bleeding,” the claim alleges. “As a result of her injuries, [she] left the water slide bleeding profusely from between her legs and required the use of a towel to stop the bleeding at the clinic at White Water World.”
The girl in question spent four nights at Logan Hospital after the water park accident. Legal documents allege that she subsequently had to return five times for additional treatment and has repeatedly missed school due to the physical and psychological impact of the incident, as well as being diagnosed with PTSD. The claimant is seeking AUD $1,027,561.33 in damages against WhiteWater World’s owner Ardent Leisure and Fully 6’s water slide manufacturer, Swimplex Aquatics.
Related: Guest Sent to Hospital After Bloody Water Park Incident
According to the WhiteWater World website, Fully 6 promises single riders a “unique splash-tacular experience” with “twists, turns and drops to get your adrenaline going.”
Our unique body slides will be the purest form of water slides that you can experience, with just you, the water and a big splash at the bottom.
With six slides to choose from with varying thrill levels, you can make your choice and take the plunge, with slides that are open-aired, enclosed with light effects, partially enclosed or totally steep for the ultimate body slide experience!
The family’s claim was filed by Shine Lawyers, who argue that “park staff failed to properly educate [the girl] on how to go down the ride safely, and that if a risk assessment had been done they would’ve identified the potential for injury.” They also allege that “there were no lifeguards in the splash zone who responded to the injury area at the time, and that it was up to [the girl’s mother] to get her help for what was plainly a serious injury.”
A Dreamworld spokesperson told News.com.au that they “[acknowledge] that a complaint has been received in relation to an incident at WhiteWater World from 2020. The complaint is subject to legal proceedings and, as such, we are not in a position to comment any further on this matter.”
Have you ever had a scary experience at a water park? Let us know in the comments!