Rosy Esparza's Accident On The Texas Giant
English 102
How many people have to die, or sustain serious injury from amusement park rides before the federal government steps in and regulates the amusement park industry? Rosy Esparza’s family had every right to believe that she would return from the Texas Giant roller coaster without harm or injury. However, Esparza fell to her death on the Texas Giant roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas. Incidents like this are sadly becoming a more common event in the United States at amusement and waterparks. In fact, the number of fatalities per passenger mile on roller coasters is greater than the amount of tragedies on passenger trains, passenger buses, or passenger planes. These tragedies often occur because the rides are not independently inspected, inspections are not done frequently enough, accidents are not made public and the accidents are investigated by the parks. The federal government needs to create national safety standards for all rides at amusement parks, so that every amusement park patron can enjoy the park as it is intended without fear of injury or death. …show more content…
The roller coaster underwent extensive testing, and received approval from the Texas Department of Insurance to resume operations, however the findings of the testing are not available to the public due to ongoing litigation. Even though Texas Six Flags has claimed no fault for the Esparza accident; the park has added incremental and overlapping safety features. These safety features include redesigned restraint-bar pads and new seat belts. So the question is, are the department of insurance officials, who inspected this ride in the past, sufficient enough to make sure these rides are safe for future
How many people have to die, or sustain serious injury from amusement park rides before the federal government steps in and regulates the amusement park industry? Rosy Esparza’s family had every right to believe that she would return from the Texas Giant roller coaster without harm or injury. However, Esparza fell to her death on the Texas Giant roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas. Incidents like this are sadly becoming a more common event in the United States at amusement and waterparks. In fact, the number of fatalities per passenger mile on roller coasters is greater than the amount of tragedies on passenger trains, passenger buses, or passenger planes. These tragedies often occur because the rides are not independently inspected, inspections are not done frequently enough, accidents are not made public and the accidents are investigated by the parks. The federal government needs to create national safety standards for all rides at amusement parks, so that every amusement park patron can enjoy the park as it is intended without fear of injury or death. …show more content…
The roller coaster underwent extensive testing, and received approval from the Texas Department of Insurance to resume operations, however the findings of the testing are not available to the public due to ongoing litigation. Even though Texas Six Flags has claimed no fault for the Esparza accident; the park has added incremental and overlapping safety features. These safety features include redesigned restraint-bar pads and new seat belts. So the question is, are the department of insurance officials, who inspected this ride in the past, sufficient enough to make sure these rides are safe for future