Tragically, 10-year-old Caleb Schwab's visit to Shlitterbahn Water Park in Kansas City ended horrifically on Sunday when he was killed on the Verruckt water slide. Caleb Thomas Schwab, the son of a Kansas state legislator, was killed while riding the 168-foot-tall Verruckt ride atSchlitterbahn Waterpark - the world's tallest - on Sunday, August 7th. The corporation behind the Verruckt water slide in Kansas City and a former operations director who is being charged with manslaughter for the death of a 10-year-old boy did not have any proper . This is a scary picture. Caleb Thomas. But dominating Texas wasnt enough for the Henrys. And he just kept saying, No, trust me, you dont want to go any further, she recalled. Terms of Use https://themeparkreview.com/forum/topic/116-terms-of-service-please-read/. By most accounts, Henrys Schlitterbahn Kansas City was an above-average park in its first few years, but it was underwhelming compared to what was promised. I learned everything I know about water by looking at it, watching it, Henry told author Tim OBrien in Legends: Pioneers of the Amusement Park Industry. Witnesses have described gruesome scenes at a Kansas theme park where a boy, 10, was decapitated when he flew off a waterslide and smashed into the safety net, Witnesses say Caleb flew off the ride at around 50ft from the ground and hit the netting, Kansas Police Department issued the above statement in response to the death of Caleb Schwab on the Verruckt Water slide, The height requirement to ride Verruckt is at least 54 inches tall and riders must be at least 14 years old, according to the park's website. The theme park with one of the most gruesome accidents in U.S. History is once again open for business. Kansas City police spokesman Officer Cameron Morgan said no police report was available of the incident and deferred additional questions to the park. State Rep. Scott Schwab, an Olathe Republican, and his wife, Michele, released a statement asking for privacy as the family grieves. Robert Boepple filed his lawsuit just two months later claiming he sufferedinjuries to his head, neck, back, arm and spine when his toe got caught ona 'protruding item' on theBoogie Bahn surfing ride. What made me say that was that the sandbags that were being tested kept flying off the rafts. (The anecdote was corroborated in the reporting from the July story in Texas Monthly. Prosapio said during the news conference that the park's rides are inspected daily and inspected by an "outside party" before the start of each season. On June 16, 2016, Norris JJ Groves, the owner of a towing company in neighboring Missouri, rode Verrckt with his wife and son, according to the indictment. In the plans, you see a destination comprising the rides of Schlitterbahn, the culture of the San Antonio River Walk, and the lodging of Swiss Family Robinson. Instead, Prosapio offered a statement.The Verrckt accident was a terrible and tragic event and we cannot imagine the suffering that the victims and their families have endured, Prosapio said in an email. People stream into the Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, Kan., on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016, as it re-opens three days after a 10-year-old boy died on the parks most noted attraction, the 17-story Verruckt slide. We literally worked around the clock.. Egan, a twenty-four-year-old detention officer for a local police department, remembered how she immediately felt herself lifting off the raft. with safety concerns now raised over the ride. That article didn't mention the slide . The slide won .css-umdwtv{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:.0625rem;text-decoration-color:#FF3A30;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:inherit;-webkit-transition:background 0.4s;transition:background 0.4s;background:linear-gradient(#ffffff, #ffffff 50%, #d5dbe3 50%, #d5dbe3);-webkit-background-size:100% 200%;background-size:100% 200%;}.css-umdwtv:hover{color:#000000;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;-webkit-background-position:100% 100%;background-position:100% 100%;}Best New Ride (WaterPark) in 2014 and was voted the fifth best water-park ride in the world in its first two years by Amusement Today. Drownings also occur. The sight of a body in the water and a river of blood trickling down the slide are images that have a permanent home in Sanfords mind. (Brownback, now the U.S. ambassador for International Religious Freedom, declined to be interviewed.) In 1979, years after buying Camp Landa along central Texass Comal River, the Henry family purchased the property next door and rebranded the resort into a four-slide water park. 'I saw his (Caleb's) brother. The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, had already put together an effort to convince residents to spend their recreational dollars in Kansas instead of Missouri. Caleb Schwab, the son of a Kansas state politician, was killed after sustaining a fatal neck injury while on the 51 metre Verruckt slide. Tyler Austin Miles,. Sanford immediately realized the fear she nervously joked about hours prior was beginning to unfold in real time. Today Verrckt, the one-time eyesore on Interstate 435 and, ultimately, a sad symbol of hubris, hardship, and a horrific tragedy that could have been avoided, is gone. A Wyandotte County judge on Friday dismissed all charges against Schlitterbahn Waterpark officials, saying he found multiple abuses by the Kansas Attorney General's Office in the grand jury. Two horrified witnesses have spoken out about the gruesome scene when a boy was decapitated by the world's largest waterslide. He added: Schlitterbahn was basically hanging their hat on the Disney languageWe are so big that we can self-inspect.The initial financial boon promised by the Texas water parks arrival failed to be fully realized. A humid breeze presses down on the dead summer grass. There are no federal inspection laws for waterparks in the U.S., and inspections are handled on a state-by-state basis. No time to die. Not much released at the news conference, but I will be intrigued to find out after the investigation, exactly what happened. Now a waterslide taller than Niagara Falls had to be completed seven months later. The indictment also said Henry helped design the giant waterslide even though he had "no technical or engineering credentials" and that he set a "rushed timeline" for its construction. In a statement Monday afternoon, Schlitterbahn said it was 'deeply and intensely saddened for the Schwab family and all who were impacted by the tragic accident.' Posted on January 13, 2020. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. WARNING: The details in . "We don't have any news so far about our Kansas City park at the time," Prosapio told the Kansas City Star. As the testing unfolded, one common denominator was present: The rafts kept going airborne. It also had aminimum height of 54 inches and a combined weight of all riders in the raft to be between 400 and 550 pounds. In March 2018, a forty-seven-page indictment from a grand jury in Wyandotte County revealed, among other things, whistle-blower evidence of how Schlitterbahn officials allegedly covered up other safety-related incidents on Verrckt, and concluded that the slides lack of safety standards posed a substantial and unjustifiable risk of death or severe bodily harm. While it isnt unique for amusement parks to get sued for isolated incidents, the magnitude of the Schwab tragedy, and Schlitterbahns decorated profile, made the grand jurys findings of the water parks negligence that much more damning. It never really came together for me, the expert said. The ride used to have a minimum age restriction of 14. The decision to keep the world's tallest water slide closed follows the death of a 10-year-old boy from injuries in a Sunday afternoon accident on the slide. As people continue to try to figure out how a ten-year-old boy lost his life going down the worlds tallest waterslide, Schlitterbahns leadership, as well as the employees responsible for the rides upkeep, have taken the brunt of the blame. There, Schlitterbahn was born. In March 2014, Linda Stomboly. I could die going down this ride., Attorneys for Henry and Schooley did not respond to multiple interview requests. The boy's body was covered up with a sheet. If General Motors has a fatality, would we say that was a bad investment? he said. The collateral? Those numbers do not include other water park injuries or those who need lifeguard assistance without a hospital trip. (Miles, the twenty-nine-year-old operations manager, took her incident report, which is now allegedly missing from Schlitterbahns records.). Over two years after 10-year-old Caleb Schwab lost his life on the tallest waterslide in the world, the amusement park industry has yet to fully reckon with the tragedy. She alleged that she was injured by the park's King-Kaw attraction while riding it. Either way, it's tragic. Standing on a platform more than 168 feet high and overlooking the flat entirety of the Kansas plains, Jess Sanford was scared. The park will be closed todayand the ride will be closed pending the investigation, Prosapio said. Prosapio said Sunday that the park's rides are inspected daily and by an 'outside party' before the start of each season. In an interview published in July 2018 with Texas Monthly, Henry refused to acknowledge that he could have designed something that would eventually kill Caleb. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time.. After a boy died while riding a nearly 170-foot-tall waterslide in Kansas in 2016, state attorneys brought criminal charges against operators and associates of the water park, accusing them of. 'Until we have those facts it's too early to specify what we can do legislatively,' Smith said. Steve Castaneda said Caleb Schwab, 10, was riding in the front of the raft on Schlitterbahn Water Park's Verruckt Slide when he fell out. Love Island fans' horror as axed Olivia handed power to destroy TWO other stars, Frogmore eviction shows King's drawn a line with Harry, Strictly star bags life-changing EastEnders role as part of new family, Baby's body found after huge search as cops quiz Constance Marten & lover, News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. Minuscule smatterings of people, mostly families and high schoolers on summer break, bounced from the rides and attractions that were still open. Ride designer Jeff Henry looks over his creation, the worlds tallest waterslide named Verrckt at Schlitterbahn Waterpark, in Kansas City, Kan. July 9, 2014. I just need to hear you say it: Is my son dead? Schwab reportedly remembered asking someone at the scene. Walking out of a Wyandotte County, Kansas, courtroom this past April, Henryregarded in the water-park industry as the Wizard of Wet, Lord of the Slides, and an aquatic Walt Disneywas surrounded by his legal counsel, confidants, and local media. One of the lifeguards would later come forward to a detective, revealing Miless work in covering up the incidentan effort that was corroborated by members of the medical staff. Why would you ever do that?. KANSAS CITY, Kan. A judge in Wyandotte County, Kansas dismissed charges in connection with the death of Caleb Schwab on the Verruckt water slide at Schlitterbahn Water Park in 2016. Gocke said she saw Caleb falling down the slide, leaving a trail of blood behind him. During the former employees final summer in 2014, the one in which Verrckt was set to open, the lifeguard remembered how Schlitterbahn tended to do the test runs after the park closed at 6 p.m., away from the public. World's tallest waterslide where 10-year-old was decapitated Caleb ,the son of a Kansas state lawmaker, suffered a fatal injury on the 168-foot-tall ride at the Schlitterbahn water park Aug. 7.. THE10-year-old son of a Kansas lawmaker was decapitated while riding on one of the world's tallest waterslides, horrified witnesses have said. The indictment says a video shows Caleb was following all rider instructions when he died. August 9, 2016 9:45am. Verrckt opened in July 2014. We may earn a commission from these links. Seems rather odd for something like this, especially if that is what contributed to this? It opened in 2010, one of five water parks operated by the New Braunfels, Texas-based corporation, Schlitterbahn Waterparks & Resorts. "Not only had Tyler ridden the slide numerous times, but, as the State is aware, he had scheduled his wife, to ride it on the day of the accident," the attorneys, Tom and Tricia Bath, said in their statement. Schlitterbahn is a family waterpark, but this isnt a family ride., On July 10, 2014, the slide opened to the public. You could tell where people hit it. The Schlitterbahn waterpark, in Kansas city - where Caleb Schwab tragically died on theVerruckt ride Sunday, has been sued three times for negligence since 2014. I was pretty shocked to see the approach they took when designing, building, and maintaining the Verrckt, said Deborah Hersman, former president and CEO of the National Safety Council. When they went down, the Travel Channel folks got stuck on the second hump, so they had to do a rerun. The former employee added: After seeing that, I told my friends and family it was only a matter of time until someone died on Verrckt. Even with the investigation into Schlitterbahn and Verrckt, and the larger questions surrounding safety regulation and oversight within the amusement-park industry, experts and lobbyists say that most rides are safe enough.In 2016, the most recent year from which data is available, 384 million guests experienced 1.7 billion rides at four hundred U.S. amusement parks without injury, according to the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), the worlds largest trade association representing the global attractions industry. My thoughts are with the boy's family and anyone who witnessed the accident. I thought we had designed the biggest, baddest thing ever built, a ride that could operate safely and never have a serious accident, ever, if things were complied with and if the thing was maintained and operated as designed, Henry said. I've seen retweets of her post with comments about his head becoming caught up in the netting. According to the police report, Caleb Schwab died of a neck injury and was decapitated while riding the 168-foot Verruckt water slide. Schlitterbahn is an important tourist attraction in our community, and we hope it remains open and a success, Taylor told Esquire. The Red Cross swim app is also available, which is designed for children and their parents. When she said no, I said, Theres a first for everything.. Goldstein & Orr. Tragic child Caleb Schwab, 10, was the son of state Rep. Scott Schwab. Challenging the laws of physics, the slide presents a drop from seventeen stories high, hitting up to sixty-five miles per hour and often leaving people soaking wet, shaking with a mixture of raw excitement and genuine fear. In fact, People reports that the initial opening date in 2014 was moved several times due to glitches with the ride. The ride, while available for riders over the height of 54 inches tall and who are able to understand the two page safety warning park employees must read them before they can enter, is actually meant for "thrill seekers", according to Jeff Henry, the co-owner of Schlitterbahn and creator of the Verruckt water slide. 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The company also promised to aggressively fight the criminal charges against Miles and the park, and respond to the allegations in the 47-page indictment "point by point.". When the time came to finally open the slide in July 2014, the hype had hit a fever pitch, with favorable headlines and print, TV, and video pieces coming from the likes of the Today show, ABC News, USA Today, Grantland, the Kansas City Star, and others. The police are working with the park on the investigation. When the raft pushed off, the seventy-three-pound Schwab was in the front seat.Sanford was eating a funnel cake with her back to the slide when she heard a noise, almost as if a ride had derailed. But even with bad knees, nothing was stopping the struggling Dueas from getting to the top. Four rides at the water park remained closed after regulators found that Schlitterbahn did not comply with new legislation implemented in response to Schwabs death. What better treat is there in this world than spending a steamy hot Sunday afternoon in August at a water park? Per http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/destinations/2014/07/09/verruckt-water-slide-schlitterbahn-park/12411769/ the age limit was removed years ago: The person who tweeted this IS a reporter for Fox 4 Kansas City. Ugh I can't even imagine that happening, thoughts out to the family and friends, especially to the other 2 that were on this ride when it happened. It was the final time anyone went down Verrckt. House Speaker Ray Merrick told the Kansas City Star that Schwab's family was 'the center of his world.'. And [the man] just shook his head. Timothy Bella is a staff writer and editor for the Washington Post, focusing on national news. How was the amusement-park giant, and the people behind it, permitted to allegedly act so negligently and irresponsibly on a project for which the stakes were so high? did desi arnaz jr have a stroke; moose tracks vs cow tracks ice cream From the ninth floor of his office, staring at Verrckt was once inescapable: It [stood] as a monument to a murder.. Note: Details on Schwab's death may be disturbing to some. It said the allegation that Caleb's death was foreseeable is "beyond the pale of speculation.". I will be curious to know if this was a ride malfunction or another instance of someone not following park rules and regulations. Though its two highest attended parks, New Braunfels and Galveston, remained in the top ten for U.S. water-park attendance last year, they were both down 3 percent each from their 2016 attendance. I remember watching the TV show last year of them building it and having to re-profile it a couple of times due to the dummies flying out of the tube and chute. Tyler Miles, the operations manager of the park, had received seventeen separate staff reports during the 2015 and 2016 summer seasons about how Raft B required maintenance, including five from that week alone. The ride was simply too fast. Winter Prosapio, spokesperson for Schlitterbahn, said the boy died on the Verruckt water slide, which is promoted as the worlds tallest water slide. Caleb Schwab had been decapitated. When their raft went airborne at the second hill, Grovess face and forehead smashed into an overhead hoop and safety netting before the raft hit a concrete wall. There was a very strong majority of legislators from that part of the state who said Schlitterbahn would be responsible for their own safety measures.. Today, August 7, is the fifth anniversary of his horrific death in August 2016. There were also suggestions that the harness on the raft was not working correctly. That boat flew. Many lawmakers were at Schlitterbahn for Elected Official Day. Storey added: The industrys long-standing safety record exists because safety is our top priority., A safety expert whos worked with Schooley and Henry says allegations of misconduct are baffling. Caleb's friend called for help but the medics were unable to revive him, the girls recalled. By April 2014, the Guinness Book of World Records officially declared Verrckt the worlds tallest waterslide, despite it not being close to finished. But, it's Twitter, so it's not that reliable. Before they took off, I said, Brothers stick together, Schwab recalled to ABC News. One is a line from John 3:16. During testing of the water slide, there was video footage of rafts doing exactly that. Once the forty-six-year-old Groves gave his incident report, Miles allegedly destroyed the witness statements and forced the lifeguards to write coached statements which omitted any detail of how the injury had occurred, telling the medical staff to alter their own reports. I stared at the white waterslide once described by Henry as an erotic piece of artits curves and drops were as grand and ambitious as advertised. Nobody expects anything dangerous to happen; maybe pruned fingers or swimmers ear, but that's it. That is insane. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and others involved, and I hope that they can prevent this from happening again. Two horrified witnesses to the death of the boy decapitated by the world's largest waterslide have spoken out about the gruesome scene. Castaneda also said that he and his 14-year-old cousin had ridden the slide earlier that day and the teenager had told him that toward the end of the ride his velcro belt had come undone.