On Wednesday, a 32-year-old man, Kevin Rodriguez Zavala, died after riding a roller coaster at the newest park from the Universal Orlando Resort, Epic Universe. Initial reports said that the man was unresponsive after the ride, and later died in the hospital. It was later reported that the man died from "multiple blunt impact injuries".
The theme park closed the attraction and will remain closed during the investigation. A statement from Universal said that they were "devastated" and that they were cooperating with the Orange County Sheriff's Office.
With the death being ruled as a tragic accident, now many questions arise: was the ride not safe? Universal is known for having the highest standard in roller coaster safety, and the ride itself, Stardust Racers, was very new, and manufactured by an experienced company, Germany's Mack Rides (owners of Europa-Park).
The ride, which opened earlier this year alongside the rest of the park, is a duelling roller coaster, meaning that two trains are launched at the same time from two parallel sets of tracks. At many points, trains pass each other very close. A question arises: could a loose object, like a mobile phone, fell from one passenger and hit the rider the other train? That would be almost unthinkable, as the ride forces riders to leave their items in lockers and go through a metal detector.
It is unknown if the man had some pathologies that could have aggravated the injuries, but the report that he had suffered "multiple blunt impact injuries" raises very serious concerns that Universal should solve quickly if they want to reopen the ride and gain the public's trust back...
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