Credit: KennywoodA popular theme park has issued an official statement after guests realized that its 97-year-old roller coaster is supported by a haphazard stack of concrete blocks.
Terrifying though some attractions may be, theme parks are built to extremely tight safety codes. Whether you want to ride something like Disney’s innocuous boat ride “it’s a small world” or a hypercoaster like Cedar Point’s Top Thrill 2, you can rest easy knowing that every single attraction undergoes rigorous testing – and that stringent measures are in place to ensure wellbeing of all guests.
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But that’s not to say things don’t go wrong from time to time.
Last year, Swedish theme park Gröna Lund made headlines when its Jetline roller coaster derailed, tossing three guests out of their vehicle, killing one guest and injuring several more. The roller coaster has since been permanently closed, with the blame pinned on a faulty support arm that the manufacturer had ordered from a subcontractor without Gröna Lund’s knowledge.
Weeks later, Carowinds – a theme park in North Carolina that is now owned by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation – was forced to temporarily close its Fury 325 roller coaster for over a month after a guest noticed a crack in a support pillar. It was later determined that “unidirectional bending fatigue” had formed a crack along the pillar’s weld line.
In 2022, a separate incident took place at ICON Park, where 14-year-old Tyre Sampson suffered a fatal fall from the Central Florida theme park’s FreeFall drop tower. An investigation revealed that the ride’s harness was not properly secured and that the restraint proximity sensors of Sampson’s seat had been manually adjusted to accommodate larger guests. The accident led to a nationwide outcry for stricter safety regulations and more rigorous inspections of amusement park rides.
With these kinds of incidents lingering in recent memory, it’s easy to understand why guests panic when they notice something out of the ordinary at a theme park. That’s why guests were shocked to notice a detail at Pennsylvania park Kennywood earlier this week.
As per a viral Facebook post from oneBURGH, guests at the park spotted two concrete blocks stacked on top of each other to support a pillar of the wooden roller coaster Racer. Even more alarming than this haphazard solution is that the blocks are slightly off-center, not fully resting beneath the foot of the pillar.
Racer is one of the oldest attractions at the theme park, rapidly approaching its 100th birthday in 2027. Described by Kennywood as “the only single-continuous track coaster in the U.S.,” it sees guests race against each other for the majority of the ride.
With the images of the roller coaster’s current situation going viral, Kennywood issued a statement to WTAE. Tasha Pokrzywa, the theme park’s communications manager, said, “The safety of our attractions is our top priority. All rides at the park are inspected daily by Pennsylvania-certified state inspectors before opening so that they may be enjoyed safely by all guests.”
The person who took the image reportedly also called inspectors about the situation. An official from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s Division of Amusement Rides and Attractions told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 that while it was “sloppy,” it “never compromised the structural integrity,” and guests who rode Racer were in no danger.
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They added that Kennywood is “working towards a more permanent solution” and that the concrete blocks have “been replaced.” Inspectors reportedly visited the park to assess the situation on Tuesday. It’s yet to be decided if Kennywood will face a penalty.
Journalists from KDKA-TV showed Kennywood visitors pictures of the blocks supporting Racer while they were entering the theme park. Unsurprisingly, several guests were shocked and expressed concern about riding the attraction. “People’s safety is at risk, and I’m definitely going to be letting my family members know not to ride the Racer,” Dorian Pirl of West Mifflin said.
After asking another family if they’d let their kids ride the park’s attractions, another guest responded, “The Racer, we’ll think about that another day. Let it get fixed.”
Racer closed early in the 2023 season to undergo a preservation project. This involved using over 1,000 feet of lumber to re-track both of the roller coaster’s lift hills. Kennywood was also forced to close another roller coaster, Steel Curtain, in 2023 after discovering a structural problem. The ride has since remained closed for the entire 2024 season.
“To increase ride reliability and longevity, the Steel Curtain will undergo an extensive modification project this year,” Kennywood said in a statement. “The park has worked with third-party engineers and the ride’s manufacturer to determine a long-term solution that will allow the ride to run without interruption. The coaster will be closed for the entirety of the season as we work on this project.”
Owned by Parques Reunidos, an international entertainment operator based in Spain, Kennywood is located in West Mifflin, just outside Pittsburgh. Established in 1898, it has evolved from a small trolley park into one of the region’s most beloved attractions.
What do you think of Kennywood’s haphazard solution for Racer?