[Paul S]

I could see this coming like a big yellow bus. Time to give a rip about safety at WDW...

Child Dies After Riding Epcot Attraction

http://www.wesh.com/news/4605206/detail.html

[rlander]

Please see the other thread to discuss this issue. Thanks!!!

http://www.disneycentral.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=18674

[gumby101]

I'm no rocket scientist, (no pun intended) but just what in the heck is a 4 year old doing on Mission: Space. Personally, I think the ride is way to intense for a child of that age. Coming from a parent of a 5 year old autistic amusement park junkie, this is a very sad story, and our prayers go out to the family..... It's a sad day in the land where dreams come true.

[Disney6]

There isn't an age requirement on any of the rides that I have ever ridden on at WDW or any other park for that matter, it is only inches tall. Yes, this is a very sad story with a loss of a child's life but as far as ripping Disney for their safety is wrong. Most injuries are caused by the rider doing something he or she shouldn't be doing on the ride and most deaths are by a illness or disease a rider has or sometimes doesn't even know about the condition beforehand.
My prayers go out to this family.

[tiggerfan74]

My prayers go out the family of this little boy. That is so sad.I am guessing that maybe the boy was sick and the family didn't know it. I can't imagine being in there position .

[Disneywife]

This is so incredibly sad. :(

I knew this ride was intense before going but I only knew because of folks here at DC. I'm sure that most guests don't have that advantage.

My dh and son did go on it and they both said that they'd never ride it again. Before they went on it I balked, I did not want my son to go on it. Riding rollercoasters and thrill rides was something that was new to the range of things I was allowing him to do. They protested, I gave in. But I did not allow my 4 year old to ride it (she wouldn't have wanted to anyway).

Fwiw, I don't allow any member of my family to ride Thunder Mountain at DL, and we skipped it at WDW, as well. I do not believe that the ride should still be operating.

I do believe that Disney should take more of a stand on keeping toddlers off of thrill rides. I'd say something like 7 and up for Mission Space, if that. But you know, it's all about $$$. The more rides that people can enjoy with their family, the more people will come.

[Cavey]

Sharon, I agree that adding an age limit to the height requirement is appropriate for some rides (probably not Splash Mountain).

In my posts on the other thread, I did want to clarify that I was NEVER trying to blame Disney. I was just pointing out that parents should be able to trust Disney's height requirements. Obviously Disney felt (and may still feel) that the only concern is height and not age. Parents should be able to trust WDW standards, just as they should be able to trust their local school bus driver.

We may discover that the same thing would have happened if the child had waited until he was 16 to ride it.

This was a tragic accident, and I don't think we should be blaming anyone, nor accusing the parents of being irresponsible. Instead, we should be mourning with this family and being grateful for our healthy children.

[pumouse]

About 14 years ago a boy that my cousin was friends with was boxing, that was a sport he was hoping to do professionally, anyway he was hit in the head and fell to the ground. He was taken to the hospital where they found he was brain dead and taken off life support. The doctors determined that he had a very rare condition and said that if he was hit by anything or any kind of jar to the head this would have happened and there was really no way to know it ahead of time. It was very sad, he was only 17 when it happened. If it was something like that having a age restriction would not have helped at all. Sometimes things like this happen, and all we can do is believe that God has a plan and we just have to trust in it. No matter how painful sometimes there is no one to blame.

[Disneywife]

Originally Posted by caver_jeffery

Sharon, I agree that adding an age limit to the height requirement is appropriate for some rides (probably not Splash Mountain).

In my posts on the other thread, I did want to clarify that I was NEVER trying to blame Disney. I was just pointing out that parents should be able to trust Disney's height requirements. Obviously Disney felt (and may still feel) that the only concern is height and not age. Parents should be able to trust WDW standards, just as they should be able to trust their local school bus driver.

We may discover that the same thing would have happened if the child had waited until he was 16 to ride it.

This was a tragic accident, and I don't think we should be blaming anyone, nor accusing the parents of being irresponsible. Instead, we should be mourning with this family and being grateful for our healthy children.

I totally agree that height should not be the only requirement. My son was well over 40 inches at age two, and at 9, he's now almost as tall as me. However, Disney would have to come up with a system for verifying age, as many parents will try to fudge it.

I saw two kids get turned away from Soarin Over California just last weekend. One kid met the height requirement but only because of his spiked hair, and the CM said no way. LOL

I don't think any of us can speculate what caused his death. An underlying condition triggered by the ride, or just the intensity of the ride on his little body, or a combination of both. I doubt that we'd ever have a straight answer on that. I think Disney is going to find themselves responsible no matter what, however, because he did meet their posted requirements. But regardless, personally, I think 4 is too young to ride Mission Space for any child of any size. I think a good response to this is for Disney to rethink it's requirements for that ride, and all rides.

I also think that more needs to be evaluated. A few years ago a boy died on Roger Rabbit (aged 4) when he was riding with his school-aged sister and they were goofing off, and he fell out of the vehicle and was run over. I think riding with an adult, adjacent to the child, should also be a requirement.

[leslieh]

I feel absolutely heartsick for this family- it is just devastating. I agree with Caver Jeffery- we should feel thankful for our children. My kids got double dessert tonight and stayed up very late (and we still have school tomorrow...) - they are probably wondering if Mom has gone crazy.

[Paul S]

Originally Posted by gumby101

I'm no rocket scientist, (no pun intended) but just what in the heck is a 4 year old doing on Mission: Space. Personally, I think the ride is way to intense for a child of that age. Coming from a parent of a 5 year old autistic amusement park junkie, this is a very sad story, and our prayers go out to the family..... It's a sad day in the land where dreams come true.

I love Disney, and I've been a Disney fan practically since birth. I agree that four years old is too young. I'm a roller coater enthusiast. I ride the giants with a big grin on my face and I'm a "let's go again" kind of person. I like Mission Space precisely because it's the first ride in awhile that actually gave me a challenge.

Nevertheless, it is incumbent upon Disney, to know the safe boundaries of their attractions. Height requirements are fine for the lap belts and shoulder harnesses, and traditional center-of-gravity considerations of traditional roller coasters-- but pulling 2 G's (that's twice the natural force of gravity) is something I don't think a four year old can handle. I don't think that should be left up to the laymen/women to decide for themselves. The culture of safety is something I brought up concern about in another thread-- it's not a "dimer switch". It's either there, or not. On, or off. I hope for the sake of Disney, and the dreams they have made come true for decades, and the ones they have yet to fulfill, that this doesn't turn out to be their fault. And it may not be-- we'll see what comes of the investigation. COD might have been something entirely unrelated to the ride.

[Erin]

Originally Posted by pumouse

Sometimes things like this happen, and all we can do is believe that God has a plan and we just have to trust in it. No matter how painful sometimes there is no one to blame.

That's very hard to do, but it's very true.

[Cavey]

Originally Posted by Paul S

I love Disney, and I've been a Disney fan practically since birth. I agree that four years old is too young. I'm a roller coater enthusiast. I ride the giants with a big grin on my face and I'm a "let's go again" kind of person. I like Mission Space precisely because it's the first ride in awhile that actually gave me a challenge.

Nevertheless, it is incumbent upon Disney, to know the safe boundaries of their attractions. Height requirements are fine for the lap belts and shoulder harnesses, and traditional center-of-gravity considerations of traditional roller coasters-- but pulling 2 G's (that's twice the natural force of gravity) is something I don't think a four year old can handle. I don't think that should be left up to the laymen/women to decide for themselves. The culture of safety is something I brought up concern about in another thread-- it's not a "dimer switch". It's either there, or not. On, or off. I hope for the sake of Disney, and the dreams they have made come true for decades, and the ones they have yet to fulfill, that this doesn't turn out to be their fault. And it may not be-- we'll see what comes of the investigation. COD might have been something entirely unrelated to the ride.

Very good point, Paul.

[palmickey]

This is such a tragedy. Many of you have had many good points, and all of us are entitled to our own opinions. This is truly one of those situations that should NOT have happened; our children should bury us, not the other way around. I will be attending services of a 9 year old tomorrow of another tragic, unexplained death of a precious child.

We can all learn from this! Accidents happen any where, any time and we may never know why. Love, Spoil and Enjoy your loved ones each and every day… as each day is a GIFT!

Make good personal choices that you can live with. Personally, our daughter never rode traveling carnival rides except for the small kiddy rides that just went around in circles. I did not trust them. Large Amusement Park rides with great caution, and the first trip wasn’t until she was seven. I would never assume that any amusement park or even “Disney” would know what is best for me or my child. They make general guidelines, the choice is mine. I would never allow my child to jump into the deep end of a pool just because there is a lifeguard on duty. I would decide if my child could swim and what was best for my child. And if something tragic happens, I know I made the best choice MYSELF, no one made that choice for me, and I trusted no one with my child’s life.

We are now the proud grandparents of a two year old granddaughter, and our daughter wants to make a family trip to Disney. We told her not yet. Our daughter made her first trip to Disney as a young woman a few years ago. We made our first trip last year, and although we saw many happy smiling children having a great time, we also saw many parents having a great time and many tired, cranky, nap less, crying children. The busses at night were full of parents reliving the day with great excitement, while the children of all ages slept, children that were exhausted!

We will be returning to Disney this year. We are thinking that we will bring our Granddaughter at the age of five. One thing that I know for sure, by the time we bring her to Disney, we will know the rides and the choices, and we will all make good choices together. We will strap her in and hold onto her as well, and God willing we will get off of those rides enjoying the Happiest Place On Earth!

[Disneywife]

Originally Posted by na4bj

We are now the proud grandparents of a two year old granddaughter, and our daughter wants to make a family trip to Disney. We told her not yet. Our daughter made her first trip to Disney as a young woman a few years ago. We made our first trip last year, and although we saw many happy smiling children having a great time, we also saw many parents having a great time and many tired, cranky, nap less, crying children. The busses at night were full of parents reliving the day with great excitement, while the children of all ages slept, children that were exhausted!

We will be returning to Disney this year. We are thinking that we will bring our Granddaughter at the age of five. One thing that I know for sure, by the time we bring her to Disney, we will know the rides and the choices, and we will all make good choices together. We will strap her in and hold onto her as well, and God willing we will get off of those rides enjoying the Happiest Place On Earth!

Renee,

I'd think that I'd feel better with a two year old at Disney versus a 5 year old. Why? Because at 5, you are going to be faced with the delimma - do I let her ride this ride? Is it ok for her? At two, it's a no-brainer. Kiddie rides only.

The only qualm you may have is that two year olds are notoriously scared of characters. Not all are (most aren't), but if you have a kid that is, two is the typical age that it happens.

I think that at two or 5, she'll be sleeping on the bus at the end of the night anyway. Be careful, I make no judgements about your family, but if I really wanted to go to Disney and bring my parents, and my mom said "not yet," I would have gone without them. You don't want to miss out on the fun!

It IS special to go with grandparents. My parents (aged 64 and 76) braved the 50th anniversary crowds with us last weekend, and then we got to watch them swing dance at Carnation Plaza.

(ok, that was off-topic...sorry!)