amusement park
Europa-Park opens again – two acrobats are still in the clinic
View of the area of the “Retorno dos Piratas” show and the “Atlantica SuperSplash” attraction in Europa-Park. Photo
© Pascal Czech/dpa
A pool of water ruptures, diving towers collapse, seven people are injured: an accident clouded the holiday mood at Europa-Park.
Two injured acrobats remained in the hospital after an accident at a high-diving attraction in Europa-Park in Rust near Freiburg on Tuesday. “We do not assume serious injuries,” said a police spokeswoman. A total of seven people were in the largest on Monday Amusement park in Germany injured when a water basin ruptured and attached diving towers collapsed. According to a park spokesman, the show “Retorno dos Piratas” will no longer be shown. “The High Diving Show would only have run for three more weeks, so the guest performance will now end early.”
The park opened as usual on Tuesday. The “Atlantica SuperSplash” water ride attraction, into which water had poured from the defective pool, was back in operation. After the accident, parts of the scenery had drifted in the water, and the boats stood still for the time being.
According to the police, five artists and two visitors were injured in the incident. Four acrobats were taken to the hospital to have their injuries checked. Two of them left the clinic that evening, the spokeswoman said.
Artists from France and Germany
According to the park, the injured acrobats are women aged 18, 22 and 29 and a 24- and 50-year-old man. “One person was in the pool, another on the diving board and the rest of the artists on the small castle with the diving boards,” said the spokesman. The two visitors suffered minor injuries.
The show includes ten artists, international athletes from Germany and France, among others. They are employed in Europa-Park by a French company. The athletes jumped from a height of up to 25 meters into the 3.20 meter deep pool several times a day during the 20-minute performance, showing extreme and synchronized jumps. “Retorno dos Piratas” started at the end of May and was supposed to thrill the audience until September 3rd. The park has been working with the artists for years.
Police are investigating how the accident happened
The swimming pool is a new acquisition that an external company built in May at Europa-Park, the spokesman explained. Similar incidents as on Monday are not known to the park.
It remained unclear on Tuesday whether and in what form the pool had been serviced. The TÜV Süd, which is responsible for Europa-Park itself, was initially unable to clarify the question because of a public holiday in parts of Bavaria, where it has its headquarters.
The police spokeswoman said the accident is still being determined. Witnesses would be questioned and the material examined. It remains to be clarified whether an expert will be consulted.
During the summer season, Europa-Park is open daily from 9 a.m. to at least 6 p.m. Last year, more than six million people came to the facility with roller coasters and other attractions near the French border – a record.
Most recently, Europa-Park had made the headlines more frequently with unscheduled events. Two months ago there was a fire, in April a roller coaster was stopped for safety reasons.
VDFU takes a stand
The Association of German Leisure Parks and Leisure Companies (VDFU) explained that the safety of visitors always has the highest priority in German leisure and adventure facilities. “The leisure facilities are among the safest and of the highest quality in the world.” There is no general increase in such incidents and the individual ones are not directly related.
All rides in German amusement parks are subject to strict and regular controls. “Thanks to the high safety standards, which are also guaranteed by external technical testing organizations, such incidents are extremely rare,” said a spokesman.
The controlled stop of the roller coaster in April at Europa-Park is an excellent example of efficient safety systems. “In the event of a fault, automatic braking mechanisms come into play here, so that even a small loose contact in the cable stops the train,” explained the spokesman. “Even during the fire, which according to our information was caused by a technical defect, all safety mechanisms and concepts worked perfectly.”