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6 injured when Suan Siam ride falls down
Six people were injured when the Indiana Log Ride at Suan Siam free-fell from the top of the hill to its waterway below at noon Tuesday.
The six were admitted to the intensive care unit of Nopparat Ratchathani Hospital.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30053490
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30053490
6 injured in ride accident at Siam Park
Six people were injured, two seriously, when the Indiana Log ride at Siam Park free-fell from the top of the hill at noon Tuesday, a deputy manager said.
The accident happened at 12:30 pm.
The injured were rushed to the Nopparat Ratchathani Hospital.
Noppakarn Luang-amornlert, deputy manger in charge of administration at the amusement park, said the accident was unprecedented.
She said ride was controlled by the level of water in its way but the accident happened because of the sudden drop in electricity power, causing the water pump to fail to control the level of water for the ride to float on.
As result, the ride, which was at the top of the hill, free-fell to the way below and the problem of the water pump caused the way to lack enough water to cushion the impact, causing the six riders of the ride to be injured.
The ride usually falls from the top of the hill down the waterway at the speed of 50 kilometres per hour.
"I was shocked to learn about the accident because it has never happened," Noppakarn said.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/10/23/national/national_30053494.php
Presumably Noppakarn actually said that it had never happened before. :rolleyes:
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/10/23/national/national_30053494.php
Presumably Noppakarn actually said that it had never happened before. :rolleyes:
One killed in Siam Park flume ride mishap
One woman was killed and five others including a nine-year-old girl, were injured when a roller-coaster style water sluice passenger boat fell from the crest of its artificial hill at a crowded amusement park on the outskirts of Bangkok on Tuesday.
............
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=122909
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=122909
AMUSEMENT TRAGEDY
Woman dies as ride fails at Siam Park
Police charge 2 workers; safety checks 'flawed'
Published on October 24, 2007
One woman was killed and five people injured in an amusement ride accident at Siam Park yesterday, the park's deputy manager said.
The accident, on the Indiana Log ride, happened at 12.30pm. It sparked calls for better safety rules for amusement parks.
Noppakarn Luang-amornlert, deputy administration manager at the park, said the accident happened because a sudden drop in power caused a water pump to fail - so there was no water for the ride to float on. The ride ran all the way from the top to the bottom of a hill and crashed, because there wasn't enough water to cushion the impact.
The ride usually careers down a waterway at a speed of 50 kilometres per hour.
"I was shocked to learn about the accident because it's never happened," Noppakarn said.
Six people - two adults and four children - who were on the ride were rushed to Nopparat Ratchathani Hospital.
They were identified as Patchadaporn Kongkarian, 35, Sampan Wong-anu, 32, Supattra Wong-anu, 9, Woranart Nakhamyaek, 9, Alisa Buarouy, 10, and Natthikamol Monjathuras, 11. Patchadaporn died later in hospital following an operation.
Park public-relations chief Pornsri Chanthornkhanma said the accident was caused by a power system disruption. This cut the pump supplying water to the ride. Two boats were stranded for two to three minutes, she said. When the water flow resumed, it forced one boat into the rear of the boat carrying the victims.
Patchadaporn's husband, Samphan Wonganu, 33, said he and family members were in the rear boat.
Samphan, who suffered minor injuries, said the water flow stopped shortly after his boat launched. He said the impact of the collision knocked his wife from her boat.
Bang Chan police said two ride operators - Todsaphon Makusa, 20, and Supalak Thapthong, 20 - were helping with their inquiries.
The investigating officers said they had already accused them of carelessness causing death.
Wivat Chamnandham, vice president of Siam Park City, said the company would take responsibility for the accident and provide Bt10,000 in compensation to all of the injured.
Dr Adisak Plitponkarnpim, head of the Child Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Centre at Ramathibodi Hospital, said the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and the Department of Public Works and Town and Country Planning must take responsibility and look into the incident.
He said the government lacked rules on safety standards at amusement parks. Such controls should be put in place as soon as they were drafted by the Department of Public Works and Town and Country Planning. The last time such an accident took place was in 2004 at Fashion Island mall.
Adisak said the regulations should include warnings, an age limit on participants and guidelines for ride operators.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/10/24/headlines/headlines_30053555.php
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/10/24/headlines/headlines_30053555.php
http://www.2bangkok.com/07/indianalog.jpg
[Photo: http://www.2bangkok.com - Taken at about 13:09, some 40 minutes after the accident.]
See the highlighted red script in the article. Bizarre! :mad:
Published on October 25, 2007
Family demands Bt600,000
The family of the woman killed in Tuesday's accident at Siam Park has demanded Bt600,000 in compensation.
Patchadaporn Kongka-rian, 35, was fatally injured when her Indiana Log Ride collided with another boat due to a sudden drop in power. She succumbed to her injuries in hospital later the same day.
An autopsy said Patchadaporn had sustained broken ribs, bruised and torn lungs and intestines, as well as bleeding in the brain.
The accident took place while she was on the ride with her husband, Samphan Wong-anu, and her 10-year-old stepdaughter Supatra Wong-anu. Samphan escaped with slight injuries, but his daughter is still in hospital.
"It was the day my sister should have been happy," Patchadaporn's younger sister Wongduen Kongkarian said yesterday. With tears in her eyes, Wongduen explained that Patchadaporn had been preparing to celebrate her stepdaughter's 10th birthday.
"I never expected there to be a funeral instead of a birthday party," the victim's sister said at the Forensic Medicine Institute, where she collected Patchadaporn's body. The body will be taken to her hometown in Roi Et for funeral rites.
Wongduen said her father demanded that Siam Park pay an additional Bt600,000 in compensation. Wongduen was given Bt20,000 yesterday as initial financial assistance by the park's officials.
The Indiana Log Ride is closed and police are continuing their investigation into the accident. The authorities have also ordered safety checks at all amusement parks, since Patchadaporn's death is not the first casualty of this sort.
Amornphant Nakorn Siam Park chairman Chaiwat Luang-amornlert said he was greatly saddened by the accident and death. "We will take full responsibility for what has happened," he said. The company has operated the Siam Park for decades.
He said his company had already fulfilled Patchada-porn's wish to give Supatra a gold necklace for her birthday. "We will also pay for the girl's education until she obtains a bachelor's degree. After graduation, she can get a job at the park," Chaiwat said.
Supatra, currently being treated at the Nopparat Ratchathani Hospital, also got a teddy bear and a lifetime ticket to Siam Park for her birthday.
"I'm still scared, but now I have this ticket, I would love to return to Siam Park," the 10-year-old said, adding that she was very sad about her stepmother's death.
Police spokesman Lt-General Pongsapat Pong-charoen presented the birthday girl with a large cake as well. Supatra said she did not know exactly what had happened during the accident, because she had kept her eyes closed all the time her boat was plunging down.
"Then, I felt my mum's body on top of me," she said.
She still suffers from headaches, but doctors say her overall condition is improving satisfactorily. She will undergo another brain scan and, if the results are fine, will be discharged in the next few days.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/10/25/national/national_30053678.php
Staff error likely cause of park death
Published on October 25, 2007
The ongoing police investigation into the fatal accident during a thrilling ride at Siam Park has zeroed in on human error.
"We believe there was a co-ordination mistake among staff," Metropolitan Police Division 4 commander Maj General Pissanupong Yutathat said yesterday, "But we are gathering more evidence and the investigation is ongoing".
He declined to give any timeframe about when the investigation would be completed.
Two officials, Tossapol Nakusa and Supalak Thadthong, have already been charged with recklessness causing injury and death as they were supervising the water pump and generator for the fatal ride.
On Tuesday, a woman died and five other people sustained injuries because two boats on the Indiana Log ride collided.
According to the police investigation, a disrupted power supply caused a water pump to fail - so there was not enough water to cushion the impact of the boats plunging down from the start of the ride. However, the staff who supervised the water pump and the generator failed to inform the ride controller who released the ride as usual.
"By normal practice, if there is not enough water, the boat must not be launched from the top," Pissanupong said.
He said he had assigned a deputy commander to closely supervise the case together with officials from the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA).
Under the Building Control Act, this case is also under the jurisdiction of the BMA Public Works Department.
Pissanupong said as part of the ongoing investigation, the Scientific Crime Detection Division would also look into Siam Park's working systems to determine whether any more people should be held responsible for the accident.
Meanwhile, PM's Office Minister Khunying Dhipavadee Meksawan revealed that a consumer lodged a complaint against Siam Park on October 18 this year over an Indiana Log ride.
In the complaint, the consumer suffered a broken coccyx after riding the Log on July 31.
Siam Park at first promised to pay for the medical bill but later reneged on the promise, citing the lack of a receipt.
Dhipavadee was speaking after chairing a meeting of the Consumer Protection Board. Siam Park managing director Wuthichai Luangamornrat said he did not receive any report on the July 31 case until the Office of Consumer Protection Board sent him a notice yesterday.
Board secretary-general Rassamee Visavavet said it had resolved to immediately suspend the use of the Indiana Log ride and to instruct all provincial governments to establish a committee to conduct safety checks at all amusement parks.
She said the board would also help the family of Patchadaporn Kongkarian, who was killed in Tuesday's accident, in seeking compensation from Siam Park.
There have been a number of fun-ride accidents in recent years.
According to a senior official at the BMA, two children died when a train ride caught fire at Fashion Island in 2002. Following that shocking accident, the government amended the Building Control Act, requiring that a committee check safety standards at all amusement parks be established under a ministerial regulation.
However, five years later, the Interior Ministry has yet to issue the ministerial regulation to enforce the safety checks.
In the wake of the fatal accident on Tuesday, the Khan Na Yow District Office had ordered Siam Park to provide safety-standard procedures for all the rides at its compound by November 2 - or face immediate closure.
The order was issued under the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Act.
Law-enforcement officials at the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) were also dispatched to inspect the Indiana Log ride.
The ride made headlines in 2002 when a Japanese tourist was hospitalised. In that case, Siam Park paid the medical bills even though police officers who inspected the ride had found nothing wrong with it.
Bangkok Governor Apirak Kosayodhin yesterday said Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont had instructed him to ensure that all amusement parks, including those in shopping plazas, in the capital meet safety standards.
Amornphant Nakorn Siam Park chairman Chaiwat said he had been planning to replace the Indiana Log before this accident took place. The company has operated Siam Park for decades.
"We have brought in many new rides and machines to replace the old ones," he said.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/10/25/headlines/headlines_30053681.php
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/10/25/headlines/headlines_30053681.php
And today is Children's Day, right!?:
13 children injured in Siam Park water slide accident
Thirteen children between 10 to 12 years old were injured when they fell down from a section of 3-storey-high spiral slide at the Siam Park Saturday afternoon.
Noppakarn Luangamornlert, a vice president of Amornphan Nakhon which runs the park, said a section of the water slide broke off and the children fell down at the section, which is about two metres high.
The slide was called Super Spiral and the section that broke off was the last section connecting to the pool.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30062056
28 hurt in Siam Park Children's Day calamity
http://enews.mcot.net/upfile/1200140938.jpg
[Photo: TNA]
BANGKOK, Jan 12 (TNA) – Twenty-eight children were injured--four critically--when part of an elevated amusement park watercourse collapsed Saturday at Siam Park in suburban Bangkok.
The 10-to 12-year-old riders were being treated at a local hospital.
The "Super Spiral" waterslide accident occurred during Children's Day when joints holding segments of the popular ride collapsed.
Seven young riders fell through the damaged slide, according to company executive.
It is the second time in less than four months that the amusement park has experienced significant safety failures.
Siam Park managing director Wuthichai Luengamornlert said the "Super Spiral," a water slide three-stories high, had broken at the 2.5 metre level and that in addition aged 10-12 riding from the top of the water channel fell from the broken joint.
Most of the 28 injured children suffered head injuries, with some broken limbs and bruises.
Four children remain in critical condition.
Mr. Wuthichai said Siam Park accepts responsibility for the accident and pledged to cover all treatment expenses.
Siam Park staff drained the water from the ride to facilitate a police investigation to inspect and determine the cause of the accident, he said.
The Super Spiral was installed and in service for some 20 years, he said, adding that the Siam Park bought it from a company in Canada.
Mr. Wuthichai said he believed that the Super Spiral was up to standard and has a 30 year life, but further investigation is needed to find the cause of the breakage.
In October last year, Siam Park hit headlines when a 35-year-old Thai woman died and five others were injured when a ride called the Indiana Log malfunctioned. (TNA)-E003
http://enews.mcot.net/view.php?id=2258
http://enews.mcot.net/view.php?id=2258
Apirak orders Siam Park City to shut its waterslide for 15 days
Bangkok Governor Apirak Kosayothin has instructed the Kannayao district office to order Siam Park City to stop service of its Super Spiral giant waterslide for 15 days following an accident on Saturday.
Apirak said the water amusement park would also be asked to inspect all of its rides to prevent more accidents.
On Saturday, 24 students were injured when the waterslide partially collapsed under them.
Apirak Sunday visited four children who were still being treated at the Nopparat Ratchathani Hotel.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30062087
Siam Park for sale at Bt5billion
The owner of Siam Park offered to sell this 26-year-old theme park at Bt5billion.
The offer came after the park's Super Spiral waterslide partially collapsed and injured dozens of children on the National Children's Day.
A few months ago, a ride at the Siam Park also killed a woman and injured some other victims.
The Siam Park spans over 300 rai of land with water park and many garden zones. The Bt5billion sale price include the whole park and all rides there.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30062091
http://enews.mcot.net/view.php?id=2258
Four injured children remain in hospital
Four out of the 28 children who suffered injuries after a theme park ride collapsed at Siam Park on Children’s Day remained in hospital for treatment, doctors said on Sunday.
Bangkok governor Apirak Kosayodhin this morning visited all four injured children at hospital and ordered a 15- day closure of the Super Spiral waterslide at Siam Park so thorough checks could be made on it as well as other rides.
The accident occurred when a joint on the park's premier ride, the Super Spiral waterslide, came loose and sent the children plunging from the ride onto the ground.
Doctors at Nopparat Hospital, near Siam Park, said they expected three of the four boys now receiving treatment at the hospital would be discharged within the next one or two days. The fourth boy, aged 13, was still in critical condition with a head injury and vomiting.
Most of the 28 children suffered head injuries. Some also had broken limbs and bruises.
Chantra Purnariksha, secretary-general of the Office of Insurance Regulatory and Supervision Commission, said Siam Park was insured with a local insurance firm and children who had suffered serious injuries would be entitled to receive 500,000 baht each as compensation.
A similar accident occurred at Siam Park last October. The amusement park hit headlines when the Indiana Log ride malfunctioned, killing a 35 year old woman died and seriously injuring five others. (TNA)
Link may expire:
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=125098
SIAM WATER PARK
Sad owner to sell his stake
Published on January 14, 2008
Chaiwat says he's depressed after 28 kids injured
The president of the Siam Park water amusement complex is so depressed by the latest accident that he is shutting down and selling out.
After 26 years, Siam Park will be closed and sold for Bt5 billion, president, Chaiwat Leungamornphan said.
He said he could not take another accident. Park-goers have been killed and injured in recent incidents.
"My heart is down after learning more people have been injured on a ride at Siam Park. I have been thinking about it all night and I have decided to sell," he said.
There have been two serious accidents at the park in the past three months. In October, one woman was killed and others injured on a ride.
On Saturday, 28 children aged between 10 and 13 were injured when a water slide broke and sent them plummeting two metres to the ground. They were rushed to hospital with head injuries and broken bones.
Chaiwat is meeting today with executives to consider an offer for the park from unnamed buyers.
The 300-rai park is the country's most popular and first water-amusement complex.
As many as 10,000 people a day - or more than two million a year - visit. Yesterday, it was almost empty.
Chaiwat has run the park since it opened. He said it had lost Bt2 billion in that time, and almost Bt4 billion had been spent on maintenance and new rides.
Chaiwat said the park did its best to prevent accidents and had employed foreign engineers and advisers to train staff.
He admitted some staff were "careless" and lacked experience. He blamed this for the accidents.
"I love it, but I have to sell because I cannot take the burden any longer," he said. "This place is like a gift that I never had when I was young. I want children to have fun on the rides. It's an amazing feeling."
Chaiwat said after selling, he would form a charitable foundation to help people.
Bangkok Governor Apriak Kosayodhin has visited victims in hospital. Four remain admitted.
He said the Khan Na Yao district office had asked the park to close the water slide for 15 days so it could be inspected.
District director Teeraboon Manupeerapen said city engineers would look at the collapsed ride and others.
The park will have to ensure all rides are up to standard before the park will be issued another licence.
The government needs to issue a special regulation covering the equipment at amusement parks, he added. Rides are not covered by the Building Control Act of 1979.
Pongphon Sarnsamak
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2008/01/14/headlines/headlines_30062134.php
14 January 2008
BMA to seek new laws on amusement park rides
Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) Deputy Governor Bansopit Maekvichai (บรรณโศภิษฐ์ เมฆวิชัย) has revealed that after investigation into the recent failure of Siam Park’s Super Spiral ride accident, which injured over 20 students, the BMA has discovered laws governing amusement park rides are insufficient. Mrs. Bansopit stated that as rides are not considered buildings they are not subject to laws and regulations set for buildings.
The BMA’s probe found that amusement parks are not required to attain permission for the construction of rides and is now seeking to have a law passed that will pertain directly to the construction and operation of theme park rides. The BMA has joined hands with the Department of Public Works and City Planning to propose amendments to building code regulations to include amusement park attractions.
The BMA at the moment is using the health and safety act to deal with the recent incident.
Reporter : RTI-Reporter01
http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/previewnews.php?news_id=255101140008
Chaiwat wants city to buy Siam Park for youngsters
Published on January 15, 2008
Bangkok City Council may end up buying Siam Park water amusement complex if the owner opts to sell it, following an accident there on Saturday.
Park president Chaiwat Leungamornlert announced that he may sell the 26-year-old park in Bangkok's Khan Na Yao district for Bt5 billion.
His comment came after the accident, which saw 28 children rushed to hospital with head injuries and broken bones after a water slide broke and they fell two metres to the ground.
Chaiwat said he was considering selling the park to Thai Beverage chief Charoen Sirivad-hanabhakdi.
Bangkok Governor Apirak Kosayodhin had also called, he said, asking him not to sell.
Chaiwat said he thus proposed the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) buy the complex and turn it into a place where youngsters could enjoy swimming or other activities.
Chaiwat said he would prefer to sell the centre to the city or a non-profit organisation.
Staff at the water amusement complex said yesterday they were saddened by news of a possible sale. Saturday's accident followed a serious accident in October, when a woman was killed and others injured on a ride. Officials at Nopparat Ratcha-thani Hospital said yesterday two of the four children sent to the hospital had gone home. The last two would be released today.
Pathum Riengrod, 60, who earns Bt6,300 a month as a maid at the Safari section, said she was astonished by news the park might be sold, but felt sympathetic to the owner's long struggle to keep it running since 1981, when it was deep in debt.
"Suan Siam is like my life. I've worked here since 1984. It's like a home to me and whenever many visitors come to the park, my fellow workers and I are happy and work hard. It feels like we also own the place. If Suan Siam is sold, I'd have to move back to my home in Bang Chan district and work as a scavenger," she said.
Pathum lamented that her life after Suan Siam would be tough because, besides bills to pay, she had many people to support at home.
"Deep in my heart, I don't want the owner to sell the park but if he does, he'd have his reasons because he has fought a lot," she said.
A 19-year-old female worker, in charge of operating a play machine, said she sympathised with the park president, saying he had fought to keep the park open for years and was saddened by his announcement.
"I feel a bond to this place although I've worked here just two months. After finishing my vocational schooling in Kanchanaburi, I came straight to Suan Siam because I love the job here - seeing families bringing their kids to play and seeing the smiling faces of children," she said. If the park was sold, she would return to work with her family in Kanchanaburi.
Another 35-year-old female worker, operating the Kids' City section, said she only heard about the possible sale through the media, not from the park management.
The seven-months-pregnant worker said most employees sympathised with the park owner and that if the complex was sold, she would return to her home town Chumphon.
Surat Leungamornlert, 26, who is Chaiwat's nephew and operates the Rock-and-Roll machine, said he had heard of a possible sale of Suan Siam.
Surat said he did not want the place to close because he wanted the park to open for people for ever. All 300 employees loved the park and the owner treated them well, as if they were family members.
Meanwhile, Chaiwat said he had received many calls from the public to give moral support and asking his family not to sell the park - while investors were also interested in buying the site.
Among them was Arthorn Janwimol, head of Ratchamong-kol Institute of Technology Pathumwan Campus, who told him not to sell. However, Arthorn also told him if he really did want to sell, he should contact Thai Beverage chief Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi.
Chaiwat said if he did sell the park he would ensure that employees got compensation according to labour laws.
He also confirmed the park would foot medical expenses for accident victims from the weekend. Chaiwat said the insurance company had already contacted 13 victims to make sure transport costs were paid.
Police had summoned the two workers who operated the machine at the time of the accident but had not charged them yet, he said. And he would give full cooperation if police wanted to summons him too.
The park has remained open since Saturday but few people have gone to use its facilities. Khan Na Yao district officers have asked the park to close the water slide for 15 days so that city engineers can inspect it.
The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2008/01/15/national/national_30062243.php
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