Robert Niles
Editor
Robert Niles

Second person killed in three years on N.Y. amusement ride

June 30, 2007, 10:48 AM · For the second time in three years, someone has died on the Mind Scrambler at Playland Amusement Park in Rye, New York.

This time it was a park employee who was thrown from the spinning ride. Gabriela Garin, 21, of White Plains, died after loading visitors on to the ride. Garin was loading passengers after another employee "bumped" her from her position. The second employee did not see that Garin was still on the platform, and started the ride.

On May 22, 2004, seven-year-old Stephanie Dieudonné died after being thrown from the Mind Scrambler.

Replies (5)

robert
Editor
Robert Niles
June 30, 2007 at 4:56 PM · This is the third death in three years at the park, which I have heard was a shooting location for the Tom Hanks movie "Big." In July of last year, a man drowned at the park.
coastergirl
Adrienne McDonald
June 30, 2007 at 5:18 PM · That's just careless! The ops should make a 'walk around' before starting up the ride to make a double check of everything. That's just stupid & senseless! And yes, I believe it was the park in BiG.
larryz
Larry Zimmerman
June 30, 2007 at 7:07 PM · I think they need as many safety keys as they have operators, and the lockout should keep the ride from starting until ALL safety keys are reinserted at the control console.
llaraggub
Peter Rowe
June 30, 2007 at 8:07 PM · I'm gutted. You can design safety systems and fail safes into every part of a ride. There is no fail safe for the human element. My heart also goes to whoever pushed the button, their life is never going to be the same again
bluesrider
Writer
Derek Potter
July 2, 2007 at 7:43 AM · Yeah that ride needs to go. My heart's out to the family and the other operator as well. I'm surprised that Rye even kept the ride after the first accident, given it's status as a city owned park. There obviously could have been an safety feature where that both employees would have to "key in" for the ride to start....even then though, you would sometimes have one op keying in for both and things like that, so it really is down to the human element on a ride like this.

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