Amusement Parks Lack Safety Standards

December 2007

Despite annual deaths, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has not required manufacturers of amusement park rides to make any safety improvements in the past eight years. Theme park rides lead to an average of four deaths per year in America, along with thousands of serious injuries.

Maintaining the average, four lives have been claimed by amusement park rides this year. The casualties include two four-year-olds, one teen, and one 21-year-old. One 13-year-old girl survived a horrific accident that cut off both of her feet due to a loose cable hanging from a ride.

The CPSC does not have a single employee dedicated fulltime to the inspection and regulation of theme park rides. Instead, a combination of CPSC agents and state agriculture inspectors are responsible for investigating amusement park accidents. Legislation that would place stricter safety standards on amusement rides was brought before Congress this month and delayed indefinitely.