QUEENSBURY (AP) — A 14-year-old Delaware girl who survived falling off a New York amusement park ride has been released from a hospital.
Officials say the teen was released Monday from Albany Medical Center, where she was treated for unspecified injuries after falling into the arms of bystanders gathered about 25 feet below the Sky Ride at Six Flags Great Escape.
Police say the girl’s actions caused her to slip beneath the restraining bars while riding in the two-person gondola with her brother Saturday night. She dangled briefly before dropping onto several people clustered on the pavement below.
Police say the ride was functioning properly at the time.
The park says the ride remains closed as it conducts an internal investigation.
The police investigation into the exact circumstances surrounding the fall is continuing.
Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services, a Cincinnati-based industry consultant, said he was familiar with the Sky Ride from visits to the park with his longtime friend, the late Charles Wood, the park’s founder.
“It’s not something that you could just slip out of,” Spiegel said. “If a rider wants to circumvent the safety stipulations, they can do it. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if they put additional safety restrictions on this ride, maybe safety belts.”
