The Department of Labor’s investigation found that Sergeant Hackemer’s death was the result of operator error. The Ride of Steel is mechanically sound and all safety devices work properly. The Park’s safety and operational requirements, which were visibly posted at the entrance to the Ride of Steel, were not followed by the ride operators. These rules require that riders have both legs, because the safety devices restrain the legs, shins, and lap to hold the rider safely in the ride’s car. Sergeant Hackemer lost both his legs in combat while serving in Iraq.

The Department of Labor is authorized to inspect amusement parks and issue violations where appropriate. Based on their investigation, the Department of Labor issued two violations to the Park:
• Operators were not properly trained on the safety and operations restrictions of the Ride of Steel
• Operators were unfamiliar with the safety requirements of the Ride of Steel

On the day of the accident, the Department of Labor ordered the Park to stop operating the Ride of Steel until a full inspection of the ride was completed. Since then, the ride has remained closed.

Following orders from the Department of Labor:
• All employees who operate the Ride of Steel have been retrained in safety procedures
• New, clearer signage has been posted in the Park that describes ride safety regulations
• Park management must now review all safety restrictions on every ride prior to the start of each ride operator’s shift

Since the Park complied with these orders, the Department of Labor approved the ride to reopen today.

Safety restrictions are posted on signs located at entrances to the Ride of Steel roller coaster. The signs read: "For the restraint devices on this ride to fully and safely engage, guests must have two legs and be within a certain range of size and physical dimension. In addition, guests must have sufficient body strength and complete use of at least one arm and hand to hold onto the grab bar. No guest may ride holding anything or with artificial limbs attached." In addition, ride restrictions include a minimum height requirement of 54 inches. As a result of his war injuries, Sgt. Hackemer was only about 36 inches tall, according to his family. Hackemer was not wearing artificial limbs at the time he boarded the ride.

Speaking about Hackemer's death, Sgt. Steven Mullen of the Sheriff's Department of Genesee County New York stated, "After being ejected, he hit the front of the car, then hit the track and was thrown forward into a grassy area near Route 77."

"The hill is the second highest in the ride, but he didn't come out at the top of the hill. He maybe fell an estimated 150 feet," said Mullen.

According to Sheriff Maha, three employees at the Ride of Steel allowed Sgt. Hackemer to board the ride, even though they were aware that he was a double amputee.

The victim was an Iraq war veteran who lost both of his legs in a roadside bomb explosion in 2008. He lost his right leg below the knee and his left leg below the hip.

Witnesses said that the man was ejected from the ride as the train climbed the ride's first incline after the initial drop. The train was traveling at about 50mph when the victim was ejected.

The ride will remain closed until investigators determine the cause of the accident. Initial reports indicate that no defects have been found with either the seat belts or the lap bars, and that all safety restraints were checked by operators before the train was dispatched from the loading station.

In May, 1999, a rider was ejected from the same roller coaster when the park was operated by Six Flags and the ride was named Superman Ride of Steel. The victim, a 37-year-old man, was thrown from the ride near its end. He suffered only minor injuries. Investigators determined that the passenger restraint system was working properly, but that the man, who was 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighed about 400 pounds, was too big for the ride. The man later won a $4 million lawsuit against the park. The jury found that the park was negligent in its failure to properly train employees to assess a rider's potential risk for ejection.

In 2004, a man was killed in a fall from the Intamin-designed Superman Ride of Steel roller coaster at Six Flags New England theme park. A report by the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety concluded that the victim was not properly secured by the ride's safety restraints. The report blamed park workers for failing to ensure that the victim's restraints were locked properly. It also blamed Intamin, Six Flags, and the victim himself, who failed to inform ride attendants that he suffered from a pre-existing medical condition, as mandated by state law. The victim rode a scooter to the boarding platform and witnesses say that the ride's attendants assisted him to his seat. Six Flags officials stated that ride attendants were not permitted to assist passengers who are boarding the ride. While investigators found "no apparent mechanical defects," they stated that Six Flags workers should have denied the victim access to the ride because his large girth prevented the lap bar restraint from fitting firmly against his thighs. The victim was 5-foot-2 and weighed about 230 pounds.

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The girl and the operator were hospitalized; both are expected to make full recoveries.

The California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is investigating.

The ride was manufactured by Tivoli of England and is operated by Wood Entertainment of San Antonio, Texas.

UPDATE: Investigators determined that a computer glitch was to blame for the mishap.

Investigators believe that one of the ride's hydraulic arms struck the decorative lighting fixture, possibly as the result of a worn bolt. The ride was ordered shut down and all of bolts in the ride's arms were to be replaced.

The Fighter is operated by Wade Shows. It passed a state inspection two months ago.

A friend who was seated next to the victim tried to grab the girl when she started to fall, but was unable to hold onto her.

An ambulance rushed to the scene, but the park had already transported the victim to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Last month, a similar accident on the same ride left two people injured. Park officials say that equipment was replaced after that accident.

The Discovery consists of a 32-passenger circular gondola that is attached to a large pendulum. The gondola rotates as the pendulum swings through the air to heights up to 60 feet.

CBS News reported that the inflatables were installed by Affordable Inflatable Entertainment of Oceanside, and the company owner said that all of the inflatables were anchored properly.

At least 10 inflatables have either blown away or toppled over in the last 2 months, injuring more than 40 people, most of whom were children.

The District Attorney's Office of Nassau County, Long Island, New York, is investigating.

The park was closed while state inspectors are investigating.

The fact that the product has no emergency exit and can be opened only by a person outside of the ball significantly heightens the risk of injury or death when a person inside the ball experiences distress. Pre-existing medical conditions, such as heart, lung, or breathing issues, can be made worse by use of this product.

An individual climbs into the large, see-through plastic ball; it is inflated with a blower through the zipper opening; and the zipper is closed, making the ball air-tight. The ball, with the person locked inside, then rolls around on a number of surfaces, including water, ice, or grass. The product is most commonly used by children and is used mainly as a ride in amusement parks, carnivals, malls, sporting events and other high-traffic areas. The product is also sold directly to the public for personal use.

Several states have banned or refused to provide permits for rides that use this product. CPSC is aware of two incidents involving this product. In one incident, a child was found unresponsive after being inside the ball for a very brief period of time, and emergency medical treatment was sought. In the second incident, a person inside of a ball suffered a fracture when the ball fell out of the shallow, above-ground pool onto the hard ground.

CPSC is warning consumers that there is a combination of risks associated with this product, including the potential for suffocation, as well as the potential for drowning and impact injuries. Because the ball is airtight, an inadequate air supply can result when oxygen is depleted and carbon dioxide accumulates inside the ball. Such a dangerous scenario can occur in as little as a few minutes. Because the water walking balls have no padding, impact injuries can occur if the balls collide with each other, or fall out of the pool onto concrete or other hard surfaces, such as ice or tile. These water walking balls are also being used on open water, creating the potential for injuries if the ball is struck by a boat or strikes a solid object, such as a buoy or pier. Additionally, the balls present a high risk of drowning if there is a leak or a puncture.

CPSC has informed state amusement ride officials of the risks associated with this product and encourages state officials not to permit this ride in their state.

CPSC does not know of any safe way to use this product.

The Scorpion is owned and operated by North American Midway Entertainment. The ride consists of three arms. At the end of each arm is a wheel-like structure that carries 8 cars. As the arms whirl, they tilt the wheels of cars up into the air, as the wheels spin and the cars swing. One of the wheels broke off its arm, fell off the ride platform, and crashed into a barrier. Some cars flipped over and fell to the platform where the whirling cars that were still attached to the the ride crashed into them.

According to North American Midway Entertainment (NAME), the ride passed an inspection just hours before the catastrophic failure. Nevertheless, NAME general manager Tony Diaz says that the company has "full faith" in its inspectors, and the Calgary Stampede says that it has not lost confidence in NAME.

Excerpts from the engineer's report are listed below.

The man struck a passerby as he fell to the ground; the passerby suffered a broken ankle.

The ride is owned by Ray Cammack Shows. It passed an inspection before it opened in Houston, and no defects were reported.

The accident is under investigation.

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Despite the statement from the conductor, police say that the investigation is ongoing, and no conclusion has been made as to what factors may have contributed to the accident.

"We cannot analyze the entire incident based on a single uttered statement. At this point we have not reached a conclusion as to the technical or mechanical findings of the investigation. The statement, while important to the investigation, does not provide conclusive evidence of the actual speed or the functionally of the train or tracks."

The train, named Sparky the Family Train, is designed to operate at a maximum speed of only 10mph.

The accident happened on the train's first run of the year.

Two medical helicopters and numerous ambulances responded to the scene. At least six children were hospitalized, but all were expected to make a full recovery.

According to the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, the ride was scheduled to be inspected three days before the accident by a state inspector, however that inspector could not inspect the ride because its battery was dead. Nevertheless, the inspector documented that he had inspected the ride and indicated that it was running properly. State officials have since fired the inspector who approved the ride for operation. They said that he admitted falsifying the inspection report.

Spartanburg Public Safety Captain Art Littlejohn cautioned that the investigation is still in its early phase, and no conclusions should be made until investigators have examined all the evidence.

"The investigation of this tragedy continues. We are continuing to utilize resources from a variety of agencies to ensure a comprehensive investigation. Every effort is being made to determine the events prior to the derailment and the contributing factors. The investigation is also focusing on whether this incident was caused by mechanical failure or human error.

"We are currently reviewing all reports, statements, 911 recordings, and an amateur video. Contrary to media reports, we have not identified any information that suggests the accident was the result of sabotage.

"Once all information is reviewed, the Spartanburg Public Safety Department will compile a comprehensive report which will include the accident reconstruction from the Highway Patrol. A report of all findings will be given to Solicitor Barry Barnette for review. All local media outlets will be notified once the investigation is completed."

The location of the cylinder is inside the ride and not visible to the ride attendant. The girl remained trapped until her father noticed that she did not exit the attraction with the other children. Firefighters rushed inside and managed to free the victim, but she died in an ambulance on the way to a hospital.

According to El Dia newspaper, witnesses said that it appeared that a floor board either gave way or was missing, causing the victim to fall upon the moving wheel, where her head got caught.

The ride passed an inspection and was properly insured.

Tokyo Police are investigating reports that the victim may have too large to ride; that the victim's lap bar did not lock properly because of his size; that the ride operator did not manually check to ensure that the safety bar was locked; and that employees did not receive proper training.

According to investigators, the ride operator, a part-time employee, said that she did not manually check the victim's lap bar because it "appeared to be locked as it was positioned right on his stomach." The ride's lap bars are designed to rest and lock across riders' legs. Normally, a lap bar is not effective as a restraining device if it rests upon a rider's stomach, even if it is locked. Police suspect that the victim exceeded the size limit of a rider, and that he should not have been allowed to ride.

According to the Daily Yomiuri, the ride operator told police: "I told passengers to lock the safety bars, but I didn't confirm [whether they were in the correct position] with my hand. I thought customers would lock [the bars] by themselves because they're grownups."

The report also indicates that the operator was quoted as saying, "At the time of the accident I was looking at a staff assignment sheet, so I didn't monitor the roller coaster operation at all."

The ride has been ordered closed while police continue their investigation.

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