Notes from Media Briefing 6/2/03
June 2, 2003, statement from Will Koch, president and general manager at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari:
Alden Taylor, spokesperson for State Emergency Management Agency (317-232-3992) at the State of Indiana is doing interviews with the news media this morning. He relayed to me that he is telling them the following:
1. Inspector Lance Zeller inspected The Raven yesterday, Sunday, June 2nd. He inspected the car and the seat that had been occupied by Tamar Fellner, 32, of New York City. He found nothing wrong. The seat belt showed no wear. There were no defects of the buckle, was no slippage of the belt, and no defects in the anchor attachments.
2. He then inspected the lap bar. He examined all fasteners, springs, teeth and dogs. He found no wear, no loose fasteners, and no missing components.
3. He checked the lap bars for "up force." He found no defect.
4. Lance is returning to Holiday World today (Monday) to perform a complete reinspection of The Raven and The Legend. This is the same type of inspection that is performed each spring before the park opens for the season.
5. He also indicated to me that he is telling the media that Holiday World is extremely safety conscious. He remembers visiting with his family last summer. A customer ahead of his family in line was just a little under height to ride. The ride operator refused to allow them to ride.
6. He said that Holiday World has an "exemplary safety record and is a first class operation."
7. He is referring to Saturday's event as an "unfortunate accident."
The Santa Claus Police Department, the Spencer County Coroner's Office, and the Spencer County Prosecutor's Office are meeting this afternoon to evaluate evidence gathered regarding the incident, and to plan next steps in the investigation. No statement has been issued other than the one issued by the Coroner's Office Sunday night.
Holiday World has hired an industry expert to investigate the incident, and to make recommendations regarding future operation of the ride. He will arrive tonight and will work at the park over the next three days to investigate and to prepare a report. When that report is complete, it will be released to the media. The Raven will not operate until that report has been issued, and any corrections (if any) have been made to the ride.
The inspector's name is Anthony Rossi. His company is Leisure Tech Services, from North Wilwood, New Jersey.
His credentials include:
1. Licensed NAARSO (National Association of Amusement Ride Safety Officials) Level III Inspector & Instructor
2. Worked with Reverchon & Schwarzkopf
3. State Inspector for New Jersey
4. Worked on construction of Silverwood Amusement Park in Athol, Idaho
5. Worked at Morey's Pier in Wildwood, New Jersey
Mr. Rossi arrives Monday night to inspect the ride, analyze the incident, and make recommendations regarding future operation of the ride.
In addition, Tom Rebbie, president of Philadelphia Toboggan Company (PTC) of Lansdale, Pennsylvania, will arrive on Tuesday to conduct an inspection of the roller coaster trains. PTC manufactured the trains for The Raven and The Legend.