NEW YORK (June 30) - An accident involving a gyrating ride with a deadly history at an amusement park north of New York City left a young woman dead Friday night, police said.
The woman was killed at the Mind Scrambler ride at around 9:30 p.m. at Playland Amusement Park in Rye, said Westchester County Police spokesman Kieran O'Leary. The indoor ride has cars that travel in a circular path while also rotating themselves.
Emergency workers responded, but "there wasn't very much anybody could do for her," O'Leary said. The woman, who was in her 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.
Police were investigating early Saturday, and no details about the accident were available. The woman's name was not released because her family had not been notified, O'Leary said.
The ride and a surrounding section of the amusement park were closed after the accident, but the rest of the park remained open, O'Leary said.
The indoor attraction, which spins riders in a darkened tent with flashing lights, was the scene of another fatal accident on May 22, 2004. Seven-year-old Stephanie Dieudonne wriggled free of the restraining bar on one of the cars, knelt on the seat and fell soon after the ride started, according to investigators.
The amusement park was not cited for any violations or required to make improvements to the ride, but officials announced plans to add seat belts, more lighting and a second attendant at the ride.
Friday's accident marked the fourth fatality in as many years at the county owned Playland, a National Historic Landmark that opened in 1928.
After the Mind Scrambler accident in 2004, a 7-year-old boy was killed the following year when he climbed out of his boat ride and fell, according to investigators.
A 43-year-old man drowned after wading into a lake at the park on July 4, 2006.
The park's director and a spokesman for the county Department of Parks, Recreation & Conservation, which oversees Playland, did not immediately return telephone messages left at their offices late Friday.
Playland is on Long Island Sound about 20 miles north of the George Washington Bridge in Manhattan. Featuring more than 50 rides, a pool and a beach, it draws more than 1 million visitors a year.
The woman was killed at the Mind Scrambler ride at around 9:30 p.m. at Playland Amusement Park in Rye, said Westchester County Police spokesman Kieran O'Leary. The indoor ride has cars that travel in a circular path while also rotating themselves.
Emergency workers responded, but "there wasn't very much anybody could do for her," O'Leary said. The woman, who was in her 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.
Police were investigating early Saturday, and no details about the accident were available. The woman's name was not released because her family had not been notified, O'Leary said.
The ride and a surrounding section of the amusement park were closed after the accident, but the rest of the park remained open, O'Leary said.
The indoor attraction, which spins riders in a darkened tent with flashing lights, was the scene of another fatal accident on May 22, 2004. Seven-year-old Stephanie Dieudonne wriggled free of the restraining bar on one of the cars, knelt on the seat and fell soon after the ride started, according to investigators.
The amusement park was not cited for any violations or required to make improvements to the ride, but officials announced plans to add seat belts, more lighting and a second attendant at the ride.
Friday's accident marked the fourth fatality in as many years at the county owned Playland, a National Historic Landmark that opened in 1928.
After the Mind Scrambler accident in 2004, a 7-year-old boy was killed the following year when he climbed out of his boat ride and fell, according to investigators.
A 43-year-old man drowned after wading into a lake at the park on July 4, 2006.
The park's director and a spokesman for the county Department of Parks, Recreation & Conservation, which oversees Playland, did not immediately return telephone messages left at their offices late Friday.
Playland is on Long Island Sound about 20 miles north of the George Washington Bridge in Manhattan. Featuring more than 50 rides, a pool and a beach, it draws more than 1 million visitors a year.
