KS - Caleb Schwab, 10, dies on 17-story Schlitterbahn waterpark slide, Aug 2016

[Tssiemer]

Can't you live a little bit after decapitation or is it instant? I don't remember I know some Doctor did an experiment back in the 1600s or something.


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[KaaBoom]

This article states that police confirm to People, that Caleb was decapitated.
Eta, correct link. Sorry
http://www.people.com/article/caleb-schwab-decapitated-water-slide-accident

I’m not saying he wasn’t, only that witnesses in all cases are highly unreliable, and I think this case is no different. I don’t know what to believe. There are enough conflicting reports, that I’m not sure what actually happened. You can pick out which ever version, you like best.

It’s kind of like some of those old Japanese movies that revolve around a court trial where one witness testifies, and then movie flashes back to the event. Then the second witness testifies, and the movie flashes back again, but this time it's like an entirely different story, with different actors, that is not even related to the first story. Then a third witness testifies and the movie flashes back a third time. This time the story uses a combination of actors and events from the other two stories, and kind of ties them together, so you can see that both of the stories could be true. But in the end of the movie, you still don’t know which version of events was true. The only thing for sure in the movie, is that the witnesses are worthless.

 

[KaaBoom]

Can't you live a little bit after decapitation or is it instant? I don't remember I know some Doctor did an experiment back in the 1600s or something.

I believe it is instant.

 

[Tssiemer]

I believe it is instant.

That's good.

I mean it's not good but no suffering.


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[MsArk]

This makes my heart hurt so much. I well remember my boys at that age, firing on all cylinders. I cannot place blame on Caleb's parents... they are probably placing too much blame on themselves. I cannot imagine what they are going through right now. I pray for peace and comfort for this family as well as the two women in the raft with him.
Agree this attraction should be permanently closed.
Ego and profit clearly clouded the judgement of those involved with the design, approval and proper maintenance of this "Dangerous, but Safe Dangerous" water slide.

 

[SophieRose]

Wow - and they had an 8yo in the raft with them.

I was thinking the rules for the ride were bent for Caleb, being a son of an elected official on Elected Official Day at the park, but apparently they let even younger kids than Caleb on the ride.

I think these cases of the raft lifting is because of the weight not being heavy enough or the kids themselves just not big enough for the harnesses.

Average height for an 8-year-old girl is 50 inches. So she was either very tall for her age or they didn't check her height.

 

[KaaBoom]

Average height for an 8-year-old girl is 50 inches. So she was either very tall for her age or they didn't check her height.

This chart shows that a tall girl could hit 54 inches even before her eighth birthday. So it’s very possible that an eight year old girl could meet the hight requirements. It’s possible that even a seven year old girl could qualify for the ride.

https://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/data/set1clinical/cj41l022.pdf

 

[neesaki]

I just heard about this yesterday, this is a tragedy that should never have happened. Now I read that the poor child was decapitated?! How horrifying! :cry:

What were these fools thinking building such a dangerous ride?! This is unforgiveable, IMO.

http://time.com/4444447/caleb-schwab-verruckt-water-slide-death/

Ten-year-old Caleb Schwab was decapitated while riding what has been dubbed the world’s tallest water slide at the Schlitterbahn Water Park in Kansas City, police said.
The case is being investigated as a civil rather than criminal matter, yet details are vague and authorities have disclosed little information about what caused the tragic accident. Questions remain over how exactly Caleb died, including whether the ride or safety equipment — as well as the Velcro straps and belt holding him into the raft — malfunctioned.

 

[AmyPond]

So horrific. I hope the investigation gives answers as to how this could have happened, exactly. Maybe it's just morbid curiosity on my part but I would really like to know the details on the incident. Did he fly out on the hill that goes up? Or the top of it? Or going down? Did the netting cause the injury? I saw video of the slide that showed some fairly graphic things on both the small hill going up and down. So I am just wondering what happened. It's seriously horrifying though.

I really hope that it was so quick that he never knew what happened. And that his last moments were that of joy going on a water slide. Maybe that's wishful thinking but I don't care.

 

[Everyday Grace]

KDOL statement:

"Safety reviews and regulatory compliances fall to various entities. State law and regulations require that amusement parks perform annual safety inspection by safety officials licensed by the National Association of Amusement Ride Safety Officials. KDOL has the authority to 'conduct random' inspections of the records and certificates of inspection, along with any other documentation related to statutory compliance.

"All occurrences of serious injury resulting from the operation of an amusement ride require that the ride be immediately discontinued by the park pending further inspection. KDOL is acting to ensure full compliance with this and other provisions of the act and associated administrative regulations.

"KDOL has requested documentation from Kansas Schlitterbahn Water Park to ensure all safety requirements have been followed."

http://m.kmbc.com/news/kansas-dept-...ement-on-boys-death-at-schlitterbahn/41119988

 

[Everyday Grace]

Locally, two Lincoln teens remember the fatal incident on the Verruckt water slide in Kansas City, Kansas from the front row seat that they shared.

Jess Sanford and Melanie Gocke both witnessed the accident first hand.

They said they were in Kansas City finishing off the summer in style, and had just recently exited the water slide where Caleb Schwab died. Both of them said it was scary, but fun.

Several hours after they went down the 17-story water slide, they heard screams and saw the 10-year-old falling down the slide.

Both said that they thought the Velcro straps holding them in probably weren't enough, and for Melanie, her thoughts went to her younger sister.

"When I saw him falling down, I automatically thought of my little sister who rode with us, who rode the ride with us three hours beforehand,” Gocke said. “She was in the front seat just like Caleb was, and they're about the same age and size and stuff and I thought that could have been her and I was really scared for her."

http://www.1011now.com/content/news/Boy-killed-at-Schlitterbahn-Water-Park-in-Kansas-389428181.html

 

[Madeleine74]

I suspect this happened so fast, as that ride goes downhill at 65mph, that Caleb would not have been aware or suffered. It sounds like the injury was instantaneous and immediately fatal, which is all one can hope for in such a tragedy. It's a freak accident, but he did appear to meet the height requirements. Supposedly one or more people complained that their harnesses (which might have been velcro, according to a couple articles I read) came loose by the end of the ride. If that's what happened to Caleb, then that's the failure point.

 

[Inthedetails]

http://www.1011now.com/content/news/Boy-killed-at-Schlitterbahn-Water-Park-in-Kansas-389428181.html

So...two teenage girls plus a younger sister rode the ride a few hours before? How in the world did that trio weigh enough to pass the 400 lb requirement??

 

[AmyPond]

WARNING - some graphic images in this video.

This is from Nightline. Talks about some other amusement park incidents as well. Makes you never want to go to a theme park, basically.

[video=youtube;o8nrv_rVp9M]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8nrv_rVp9M[/video]

The video shows a lot of blood. And I see two blankets at the bottom of the slide where I assume his body is located underneath. So some may want to avoid the video.

 

[AmyPond]

In this video, you can see a photo and video of a man and his family that were on the ride recently. You can see that the shoulder strap had come undone during this ride.

http://www.kctv5.com/clip/12649338/...-didnt-address-concerns-enough?autostart=true

And another video with photos of the ride's strap missing....

http://fox4kc.com/2016/08/08/family...ing-10-year-olds-tragic-death-on-water-slide/

 

[Jewels53]

FOX 4 News ‏@fox4kc 6m6 minutes ago
A limited portion of @Schlitterbahn will open for guests at noon on Wed. Verrückt will not re-open for the remainder of the season

 

[AmyPond]

I am sure that the park will find a way to reopen the ride next year. It will have an age minimum of 16 or 18. It will have a new harness system. Maybe some new kind of netting (though honestly, it seems like it would just be for a false sense of security.) I have a hard time seeing them willing to close this ride they spent so much money on. Less people may ride at first but over time, people will forget. Though I wouldn't be surprised to see another injury or death in the future.

 

[AmyPond]

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,21023440,00.html

Dr. Kenneth Solomon at the Institute of Risk & Safety Analysis tells PEOPLE it would be very concerning if the ride in fact only used velcro as a constraint.

"That's a definite no-no," he says. "Velcro is not good for force that pulls outward. It also doesn't secure well and most importantly if there is any kind of debree in the velcro material it would affect the ability to adhere."

 

[Ray_of_hope]

"Police and firefighters found Caleb Thomas Schwab in the pool at the end of the ride on Sunday, police said."

So he actually fell from the raft?

[video=cnn;us/2016/08/09/kansas-waterpark-tennessee-ferris-wheel-federal-agency-oversight-marsh-dnt-lead.cnn]http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/07/us/kansas-schlitterbahn-water-park-child-death/index.html[/video]

 

[K_Z]

"Police and firefighters found Caleb Thomas Schwab in the pool at the end of the ride on Sunday, police said."

So he actually fell from the raft?

[video=cnn;us/2016/08/09/kansas-waterpark-tennessee-ferris-wheel-federal-agency-oversight-marsh-dnt-lead.cnn]http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/07/us/kansas-schlitterbahn-water-park-child-death/index.html[/video]

I wouldn't exactly characterize it as "falling". My take on the incident is that he more than likely went airborne, then became "snagged" (or entangled) on some part of the enclosure, and the raft he was in just kept going (fast speed and momentum). Probably his body hit and dragged over the other rider's faces and heads, causing their injuries-- there isn't much room between the raft and the top of the net and hoop enclosure. He was washed down the rest of the slide hill to the bottom pool by gravity, and the water flowing from the jets on the upstroke of the hill. At least that is what it sounds like happened, piecing together various news pics and reports.

The park advertises advertises slide speeds of 60-75 mph. Those are highway speeds. Humans are pretty fragile at those speeds, unprotected.