Accidents Involving Injury at Hersheypark

Official U.S. federal and state data on theme park accidents is almost nonexistent. That's why Theme Park Insider users are creating this visitor-maintained database of theme park accidents--to give public at least some information about attraction safety records.

Do you know of, or have been part of, an accident involving injury at Hersheypark? Report it to Theme Park Insider.

Verified Incidents

5/9/2009 - Coal Cracker - Submitted by robert on 5/11/2009

A Delaware woman was taken to a local hospital with unspecified injuries after several boats collided at the end of the flume ride.

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I was at the railing facing the ride and the car came down the chute. It hit the bottom and went under the bridge like it always did, but this time the car kept coming straight at us. It rain up onto the rocks and almost hit the railing. There was 19 people in the car. The paramedics came and put some of the people on backboards and one girl had those inflatable cuffs put on her legs. 6 people were taken to Hershey Med by ambulance. They were various ages. It appeared that the people in the car were between the ages of about 6 years old up to people in their 50's. The ride was immediately shut down and park security closed off the area. It was scary but I have to commend the park on their response time and how quickly they tended to the injuries of the people in the boat.

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Follow-up:
Tidal Force is currently shut down after an incident on Saturday when the water level in the splashdown lagoon ended up being lower than it should have been and a boat failed to slow down quickly enough. The boat reportedly rammed up against a guardrail on the final turn at the bottom resulting in six riders being taken in for medical exams and later returned to the park. -- Submitted by Name Withheld on 7/20/2003

I work at the park -- Submitted by Name Withheld on 6/29/2003

I was at the Tidal Force on Saturday June 28, 2003 when this accident occured. I managed to get an "inside scoop" on what had occured. I was told that the ride operator had pressed the emergency stop located in the operator station to stop the ride (I never found out why this was done). A boat had already cleared the lift chain and was at the top of the ride preparing it's descent. This boat had cleared the chain AFTER the emergency stop was pressed. The boat continued down the ride and appeared to "glide" over the water at a very high rate of speed. The track area at the bottom of the ride did not fill with water and appeared to remain shallow. As the boat descended, it was not met with the "tidal wave" as usual, instead the boat continued to the bottom of the track where the track makes a nintey degree turn. At this point the boat jumped the track and came to a stop on the rocks in front of the ride. Hersheypark EMS responded to the scene. Four passengers were transported from the scene and I later heard that they were taken to the Hershey Medical Center for treatment. The other boat passengers were escorted from the area by what appearred to be Hersheypark officials. -- Submitted by Name Withheld on 6/30/2003

I am a current employee of HersheyPark Rides Department. I operate the Tital Force very often, and I have the actual story of what happened, in detail. Basically, at this point in the day, we had 3 boats loaded to speed up the line. Boat one was at the very top of the lift which is the point when boat 2 should be dispatched to leave the station. The dispatcher accidently pressed the E-Stop button instead of the dispatch button, which shuts down the ride, and all water pumps in the ride area. The boat was already on it's way down by the time she hit the button, but this might have been a stroke of luck. By turning the pumps which keep the boat moving back into the station off, this might have prevented the boat from become un-stuck from it's resting point on the rocks after the inccident, which could have caused the boat to capsize. I am proad of all my fellow operators who were on the ride, and I believe they did everything in their power to make sure that everyone was taking care of. Oh, and on one final note, everyone was treated and released from the hospital that night, and the ride is shut down until fourther notice. -- Submitted by Name Withheld on 6/30/2003

Unverified Reports

My friend Sean Coles told me that a girl had her hands up before the launch.Then the coaster launched and her hands went back fast and banged it on her nose. She broke it.

This incident has not been confirmed. Click here if you can verify it, or have additional information.

If you have additional information that can confirm, clarify or refute any of these reports, please e-mail the editor! (Please don't forget to include the attraction's name in your message.)

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