Whether you are a San Diego County resident with kids who enjoy zip lining, or if you live in another part of the country and are planning a trip with your family to an area of Southern California where zip lining is popular, it is important to understand that zip lining can come with injury risk. Indeed, zip line accidents happen more often than you might think, and these accidents frequently happen because of another party’s negligence. As an article in HealthyChildren.org explains, zip lines are a “common attraction at camps, amusement parks, and in backyards . . . across the U.S.,” yet not all zip lines are created equal in terms of their safety ratings.

Whether your kids are planning to zip line, whether it is close to home or on a zip lining adventure on vacation or at camp, you should learn more about the activity and ways to avoid zip line injuries.

Zip Line Injuries are Becoming an “Epidemic”

Zip lining is a popular activity in many parts of Southern California, and some people even set up zip lines in their own backyards. As zip lines become more popular with kids and families, the injury rate associated with zip line accidents has risen. According to Dr. Gary A. Smith, a former chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention, the number of zip line accidents that emergency room physicians and pediatricians are treating rises to the level of “an epidemic by any definition.”

As Dr. Smith emphasized, “many zip lines are not regulated, and there are no uniform safety standards.” Accordingly, there is a wide range of safety (and, on the flip side, risk) when it comes to zip lines.

Need for Better Zip Line Safety Training

Not only do parents need to be aware of who has created the zip line and who is running it, but they also need to be certain that their kids have the proper training to avoid a serious accident. Between 1997 and 2012, emergency departments treated almost 17,000 zip line injuries. That figure comes from a 2015 study conducted by Dr. Smith, who also determined that approximately 50% of all those injuries involved children under the age of 10. Then, about 33% of those injuries involved kids between the ages of 10 and 19. To put that information another way, more than 80% of all zip line injuries requiring emergency department visits affected kids.

According to Dr. Smith, “if kids are using [zip lines], you really need to make sure they’re using them in places where people are trained, they know what they’re doing, and the zip lines have been constructed in a way that they’re not going to fail.”

Tips for Parents for Zip Line Safety

What can parents do to make zip lining safer? The HealthyChildren.org article offers the following tips:

• Ensure that kids wear a helmet, a harness, and gloves;
• Require operators to be trained in safety protocols;
• Ask how often the zip line equipment is inspected and maintained (this should happen regularly);
• Only use zip lines that have safety rules and that require participants to follow those rules.

Contact a Valley Center Zip Line Accident Lawyer

If your child was injured in a zip line accident, a Valley Center zip line accident attorney may be able to help. Contact the Walton Law Firm for more information.

See Related Blog Posts: What Do Parents in Carlsbad Need to Know About Zipline Injuries? Amusement Park Accidents and Fatalities

(image courtesy of Perry Grone)

How often do serious and fatal injuries happen at large resorts? When a vacationer does get hurt, can he or she hold the hotel or the resort responsible? These types of claims fall under an area of personal injury law known as premises liability. In short, premises liability law holds that property owners—including resort and hotel owners—have a duty to keep a property free of hazards and to warn guests about serious dangers on the property. Why is this an important topic to discuss now?

Given that it is summertime, many families are planning vacations to resorts and hotels across the country. But more salient, perhaps, is the recent death of a toddler at the Walt Disney Resort, according to a report in The Washington Post. The child’s death may have happened in Florida, but it should alert parents in California and across the country to potential hidden dangers on family vacations and to the consequences of hotel negligence.

Child Killed by Alligator at Disney Property

As the article explains, a 2-year-old boy was wading near the edge of a man-made lake at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa property when he was attacked and killed by an alligator. At the time of the animal attack near the hotel, Disney had not placed any signs warning guests about alligators. There was a sign that told guests not to go swimming in the lagoon, yet Disney has reacted to the child’s death by installing signs about alligators and snakes throughout the resort area.

As the Washington Post article clarifies, “the absence of signage warning of the threat of alligators at the beachfront” could result in Disney being held liable for the child’s fatal injuries. Although the threat of alligators in nearly any body of water in Florida is well-known to residents and often is emphasized to visitors, experts believe that Disney had a duty to warn its guests about the potential for an alligator attack near the man-made lake area. While “most Floridians know that alligators live in nearly every freshwater body in the state . . . it would be reasonable to argue that vacationers coming from somewhere like Nebraska wouldn’t share the same knowledge.”

Disney has responded by installing warning signs across the hotel property and throughout the resort area. According to Jacquee Wahler, a spokesperson for Disney, “we are installing signage and temporary barriers at our resort beach locations and are working on permanent, long-term solutions at our beaches.” Wahler underscores that Disney plans to “continue to evaluate processes and procedures for our entire property.” What do the new signs say?

DANGER! ALLIGATORS AND SNAKES IN AREA. STAY AWAY FROM THE WATER. DO NOT FEED THE WILDLIFE.

Determining Liability in an Animal Attack at a Hotel

Did Disney have a duty to warn its hotel guests about the possibility of an alligator attack in the event that those guests ventured near the man-made lake? As the California jury instructions for a premises liability claim make clear, a hotel owner may be liable if she or he was negligent in exercising a basic duty of care. What does the basic duty of care require? As the jury instructions explain, “a person who owns/leases/occupies/controls a property is negligent if he or she fails to use reasonable care to keep the property in a reasonably safe condition.” To keep a property in reasonably safe condition, the law requires that person to “use reasonable care to discover any unsafe conditions and to repair, replace, or give adequate warning of anything that could be reasonably expected to harm others.”

If the Disney attack had occurred in California, the toddler’s family might be able to make a convincing argument that, even if Disney did not specifically know about an alligator in the lagoon, it should have given hotel guests adequate warning about the possibility of an animal attack given the prevalence of alligators in Florida’s freshwater areas.

If you or someone you love recently sustained injuries at a hotel or at a resort, you may be able to file a premises liability lawsuit. An experienced hotel injury attorney can discuss your options with you. Contact the Walton Law Firm today for more information.

See Related Blog Posts: Amusement Park Accidents and Fatalities The Dangers of Amusement Parks

Child Death at Six Flags Park

According to the Los Angeles Times, 10-year-old Jasmine Martinez exited from the Revolution ride at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California after losing consciousness. Theme park officials reported that the girl “came into the ride station unconscious” after the rollercoaster route had concluded. The Revolution rollercoaster, as Six Flags describes it, “climbs up a 113-foot hill, then swoops through slopes and a long, steep straightaway to a 90-foot-tall vertical loop.”

Emergency responders airlifted Jasmine to Northridge Medical Center, and she was later transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Jasmine died at Cedars-Sinai the day after she was found unconscious at the park.

California state officials determined that Jasmine’s injuries weren’t “related to the operation of the ride,” and the park quickly reopened the looping roller coaster ride. However, following the girl’s death, Six Flags again closed the ride in order to re-investigate. According to the park, “there is no evidence to suggest that this was in any way ride related,” but Jasmine may have had a pre-existing condition. Since the park opened the ride almost 40 years ago, more than 45 million people have ridden it without incident.

However, injuries are somewhat common on rollercoaster rides. Based on an analysis conducted by the Los Angeles Times that looked at about 2,000 accident reports between 2007 and 2012, about 16 percent of accident reports indicated that a park guest had suffered back or neck pain. Worse yet, about 12 percent of reported accidents cited head injuries. At theme parks, most injuries occur on rollercoasters and waterslides, with an average of about 350 injuries each year.

More Serious Rollercoaster Injuries in Santa Clara

In the wake of Jasmine’s death, two people at Santa Clara’s Great America amusement park suffered injuries on a rollercoaster. As the Flight Deck rollercoaster was coming back into the station, a park employee sustained traumatic injuries when he was struck by the train, according to an ABC 7 report. Witnesses indicated that the worker “stepped into the path of the rollercoaster while trying to retrieve a rider’s cellphone.” At the same time, one of the guests on the rollercoaster reported a serious hand injury and was taken to the hospital for evaluation.

Due to the serious nature of the incidents, the theme park closed the rollercoaster in order to complete an investigation. News of the injuries brought back memories of a 1998 incident at the park in which a guest suffered fatal injuries from the Top Gun rollercoaster.

While a day at an amusement park can sound like a great summer activity, theme park rides can also pose serious risks of injury. If you or your child sustained an injury at an amusement park, you should discuss your case with an experienced San Diego accident lawyer. You may be eligible to file a claim for compensation.

Photo Credit: Joe Shlabotnik via Compfight cc See Related Blog Posts: Are Southern California County Fairs Safe? The Dangers of Amusement Parks

Southern California law firms Berman & Riedel and Walton Law Firm recently settled an $8 million case on behalf of ride operator who suffered a traumatic brain injury while operating a ride at the San Diego County Fair. A ride passenger was also injured the accident.

Just yesterday, a 31-year-old woman name Sabrina Gordon died at the San Bernardino County Fair in Victorville while attempting to participate in a new attraction called FreeDrop USA. According to reports, the ride required individuals to climb up on a platform and jump into a large airbag. No ropes or harnesses are used.

According to witnesses, Ms. Gordon, a navy veteran, was planning on jumping from 28 feet high when she suddenly fell to the ground.

Ms. Gordon’s father Lyle Bell told ABC7 News, “You get professional stunt people that do these things. You don’t have ‘Joe Blow’ off the street for $15 jump out of a tower on an airbag. They’re letting people do this down there,” Bell said. “It’s their first year there, and sure enough, somebody gets killed, my daughter.”

Sheriff’s and OSHA are investigating the death, and the ride has been shut down indefinitely. The ride was operated by FD Event Co. LLC.

Walton Law Firm represents individual and families throughout Southern California in a variety of injury and death related cases, including cases of amusement park ride injuries at commercial parks and county fairs. For a free consultation about a case of any kind, please call (760) 571-5500.

Summertime is all about enjoying the weather and relaxing–or trying to find ways to keep your children active while not in school. Popular activities include spending time by the pool, grilling hamburgers and hotdogs at a barbecue, and basking in the sun at the beach. Typically, summertime activities involve a bit of laziness. However, some summertime activities exist for thrill-seekers who still need a dose of excitement even in the heat.

For example, with their unpredictability and high-speed roller coasters, amusement parks certainly offer excitement. But as with most thrills, there is a bit of risk. Our San Diego personal injury lawyer appreciates that not only do amusement parks offer exhilaration, but they also present a level of danger for visitors. Not all risk can be eliminated (that’s half the fun), but it is crucial that these establishments do everything reasonable to ensure park visitors are not actually hurt when enjoying the entertainment.

Amusement Park Disasters Surely we do not expect to suffer any kind of harm in a place where we are accompanied by Minnie and Mickey Mouse or where cartoon characters invade space. But looks can be deceiving. For example, an article in The Huffington Post brings to light the inherent deceptions of these amusement parks; sometimes with deadly results. The story includes a list “Ten Terrifying Amusement Park Disasters.” The story is a reminder of the risks when owners and operators of these facilities cut corners or otherwise fail to take visitor safety as serious as possible.

For example, “Action Park,” is regarded as one of the most dangerous amusements parks of all time. Opening in 1978 and shut down in 1996, the facility is a poster child for the hidden dangers of these lands of fun. During its short span of operation, six people were killed from ride failure, poor maintenance, or gross negligence. One of these deaths included a man who was electrocuted after being dumped from a kayak ride. Others involved drowning in the Tidal Wave Pool.

Other stories making the list include a pair of brothers who drown trying to swim back from “Tom Sawyer Island.” In another case a husband and wife were enjoying what was supposed to be a very tame gondola ride. It turned deadly when the slow-moving airborne coach slipped off its cable and plummeted to the ground.

The Law The law allows those hurt by the negligence of others to receive redress for their losses. That might apply in many of these amusement park cases. Wrongful death lawsuits are appropriate in situations where a death would not have occurred had the responsible party for the death acted in a safe and reasonable manner. Surviving family members of the victims have standing to bring such lawsuits. Many different factors are weighed in these cases to understand what the parks did or did not do which contributed to the accident. In many cases a combination of factors lead to the injury–including negligence by the victim. Yet, just because someone hurt is not blameless does not mean that they (or their family) cannot pursue legal action to hold the facility accountable for its role.

Although summer is a time to have fun, our San Diego personal injury attorneys understand that it is also a time where certain accidents–like those at amusement parks–are more likely to strike. We urge you to always be aware of basic safety standards, but in the event that you are injured in an accident, please contact our North County San Diego injury lawyers at Walton Law Firm to see how we can help.

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