Accidents Involving Injury at Kings Island

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 Kings Island? Report it to Theme Park Insider.

Verified Incidents

8/8/2009 - Firehawk - Submitted by robert on 8/9/2009

A male rider was having breathing problems when his train returned to the station. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died that evening.

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More than two dozen people were injured when the Son of Beast coaster came to an abrupt stop at the end of its ride. At least one person was admitted to a local hospital and about 20 others were taken to hospitals, treated and released. Local authorities said that most of the injured were treated for minor neck and chest injuries.

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Follow-up:
The ride was closed down all that morning when I got there. That was actually the first ride myself and the people I was with wanted to ride. It was around 5pm when we went back to see if we could get on it when we were stopped and told no. When we asked why we were told something really rough happened. Thank God no one was killed. -- Submitted by ajm+hdp on 7/10/2006

Steven P i read ur follow up on the article on the son of beast and i find it really funny that u said u rode it at 4pm because the son of beast is still closed from the incident so there is no way that u were on it -- Submitted by 77coasterfreak77 on 7/13/2006

I was one of the first rescues workers on the scene. I ended up transporting 3 pt. total to area hospitals. The first pt is still in the hospital and had the worst injury. She suffered a fractured sternum and that was confirmed by Dr. Borazoto of trauma services at B-North hospital. 29 total pts were transported. -- Submitted by ffemt on 7/11/2006

I visited the park the following Monday, July 17. I have been keeping up with news and other reports of the accident and aftermath, and my question is this: When I was there I saw they had left one train parked on the lift. During the actual event, had another train been sent out of the station before the 'accident train' came back into the station? If so, was the next train that had been sent out stopped on the lift and the riders evacuated? Or were they only running one train that day? I have not read anything about this so I am very curious to find out about this aspect of the whole event. Thank you. -- Submitted by MachineMusic on 7/25/2006

When I tried to board the ride, it was closed because someone had suffered from some sort of heart problem while on the ride. From what we were told, a man had complained of extreme chest pain and was unable to breathe when the train arrived in the station. -- Submitted by zsparklz on 7/10/2006

The day that this incident happened, the Son of Beast was closed from opening to approximately 3pm. I rode the ride at approximately 4PM. I got off of the ride in extreme pain and a black and blue mark on my ribs, but a half an hour later, as I was leaving the park, I was informed that more than half of the riders on a Son Of Beast train were being taken to hospitals after complaining of neck and chest injuries. The Cincinnati Enquirer has an article with firsthand accounts and park officials. The article is also asking those who rode the ride that Sunday to contact them (people like me.) -- Submitted by sjp2084 on 7/10/2006

I rode it at 4PM on the day of the accident. The ride opened around 2PM that day. My sister was quoted in the article. Read closer my friend. -- Submitted by sjp2084 on 7/15/2006

I will tell you this ride is tough to ride without any accidents. I enjoy it however, it almost feels as if you are suffuring from a huge turbulance. -- Submitted by dianedavis228 on 2/8/2007

Karen Krekeler, a mother of four from Bethel, Ohio, suffered an apparent heart attack while riding Top Gun. Park officials noticed her having trouble breathing when her train reentered the station. Paramedics were summoned and performed CPR. She was taken to Bethesda North Hospital, where she was taken off life support and died the next day.

For more information about this incident, visit http://www.newsnet5.com/news/2368374/detail.html

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Follow up to the Beast accident: Braking system was replaced throughout the Beast with "clamp" style brakes instead of the ones that could raise up underneath the cars of the train.

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Follow-up:
I can verify that the clamp-style braking system is now in place and is a safer mode of stoping the trains. It is a little jerky, but it is safer. -- Submitted by obi5 on 5/11/2002

Two trains collided in the station during a rain-related shutdown of the ride. The second train failed to stop short of the station and slid into another train that was unloading passengers. Twenty people were taken to area hospitals with various injuries. No injuries requiring an overnight hospital stay were reported.

For more information about this incident, visit http://enquirer.com/editions/2001/10/15/loc_beast_riders_taken.html

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The ride on this coaster was so rough that everyone departing the trains were complaining of headaches. It's the morning after and I still have whiplash.

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Follow-up:
The ride has always been rough, but after spending the whole summer trying to smooth out the tracks, it still hurt some poor old guy (who did have back problems & should not have been riding at all) pretty seriously. -- Submitted by mandalea on 10/17/2001

My friend and I rode it when it first opened and we had headace's along with everyone else on our train...There was this girl in the train before us and when she returned she was crying so hard...I got scared to ride it...and we were sore after riding it! -- Submitted by razor12 on 7/12/2006

Unverified Reports

The drop down harness did not drop down far enough to secure me in the ride. The attendent ensured the harness was locked in place but not that it was secured against the trunk of my body. I was okay until the ride began going thru the first inversion, then I was thrown against the harness and and injured severely. I continued thru the rest of the ride being thrown repeatedly against the harness. I thought my injury was nothing more than a muscle strain and went home to treat it with ice and heat. Three days later I had to go to the emergency room and found that I had broke the 5th rib on my right side of my chest. When I phoned customer relations to report my injury and suggest that the attendents should insure that the harnesses are properly placed, I was met with cordial disbelief that this could have occurred.

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

a man had got on the ride and had a heart attack the crew were doin c.p.r as to right now i dont know if he alive

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

I received a very bad bruise on my left shoulder blade from the edge of the seat, as I was constantly thrown into it. The ride threw me all over the place, and since I had no arm room, I couldn't do anything to prevent it.

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

Follow-up:
The Son Of Beast jolted riders before the loop. -- Submitted by Coasterfan2000 on 7/10/2006

I was riding the son of beast with my boyfriend and my friend. We had ridden it earlier in the day and it was fine. But this time we rode it it was so shaky and painful. I blacked out on the ride and my head hurt for like 5 days. I have never had a terrible migrane like that. It felt like my head would fall off and my chest would collapse. We had to leave after we rode it

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

I was riding this ride with my boyfriend and apparently I totally blacked out and was completely limp in my seat after the secoend drop. I woke up right as we were pulling into the station. No one noticed but my boyfriend ridding next to me. Oh ya ahd there were two PKI employies sitting accross from me who apparently noticed but didnt want to get involved. i was unable to drive home or fully regain my sences for quite some time.

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

ride bruised my back and made my neck very sore, I had headaches and neckaches for two weeks after the ride..I tried to tell one of the employees but they ignored me and just walked off without talking to me

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When I was riding the Beast in seat 1:3, I got a bad bruise in my right armpit/shoulderblade area from the seat cushions as a result of slamming into them during the sharp turns.

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

Follow-up:
I have also had problems riding in car 1 seat 3. This seat seems to jerk you around a lot. Sitting in the front seat of car 2 you can see how much you get jerked around. It is worse than riding in back. -- Submitted by elwood89 on 10/7/2004

I found out the hard way that the "Beast is always lurking". Immediately upon entering the first tunnel of the spiral my arms extended up (against the rules, I know, that is why they have the signs) It jerked my arm left in the front car. I brushed the knuckle of my pinky against the wood plank on the inside of the tunnel. Luckily it was just a decent gash/burn (no stiches). When it hit my arm wasn't fully extended. I probably could have extended it another 5-6 inches. Had that happened a fraction of a second sooner (ie outside of the tunnel) I cringe to think what could have happened when we entered. It could have snapped my arm/elbow like a twig. Keep in mind I have grown up on this ride and have spent countless summers on it. I am 29 years old and probably have riden it between 250-300 times. In all that time of riding the Beast I had never experienced anything of this nature before. After it happened my friend insisted we ride again, so we have a neat picture of my still bleeding knuckle next to the "Warning: The Beast is always lurking" sign.

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

After the ride was over a young girl, probably between 9-11 years old, was fitted with a neck restraint by park staff and lifted out of the car and onto a stretcher for injuries suffered during the ride.

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

Follow-up:
I can not verify this one incident, however, it is standard practice for a guest to be put in a neck brace if there is any chance of having an injury to the neck or back. It's better safe than sorry. -- Submitted by Name Withheld on 11/19/2002

I've riden the beast only 2 times. The last and final time was in 1996. Very rough shakey ride. Too strong for your neck to hold your own head up! Body very bruised. Not intended for kids-shakin brain sindrome can happen. I refuse to ever go on it again because of how rough it was. Even back then I had a feeling something would go wrong in the future. Just from the ride itself. I had major headaches, backache and bruises-having to take motrin for a few days. And visits to the chiropractor. The ride should be torn down-. Build new smooth "son of a beach" ride to replace it. ha!

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

After riding I had low-level whiplash for a period of ten days. While an EXCELLENT ride, it gave me delayed whiplash.

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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