(Saturday, April 4, 2004) - Two roller coaster trains collided in an accident on Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Anaheim. The accident happened as the ride's operators were restarting the ride. There were no passengers in the trains and no one was injured.
According to state officials, the operators failed to follow operating procedures as they rebooted the ride's computer system. Apparently, they did not clear the coaster track of trains before they initiated the procedure that restarts the ride, leaving one train sitting on the track and sending another through. The ride's anti-collision mechanism failed because the ride's computer system loses the memory of the locations of the trains when it is reset.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) has ordered the park to retrain two of the ride's operators, but says that the collision "would not have happened during the operation of the ride with passengers on it."
Witnesses in the park reported hearing a "horrifically loud metallic sounding" crash which could be heard throughout Frontierland.
Last September, one person was killed and 10 others were injured when two trains collided on the same ride. OSHA faulted the park for improper maintenance and poorly trained employees. The ride was shut down, but reopened last month after state officials were satisfied that the park had taken the appropriate measures to correct its problems.
The ride closed Saturday after the accident, but reopened on Sunday.
According to state officials, the operators failed to follow operating procedures as they rebooted the ride's computer system. Apparently, they did not clear the coaster track of trains before they initiated the procedure that restarts the ride, leaving one train sitting on the track and sending another through. The ride's anti-collision mechanism failed because the ride's computer system loses the memory of the locations of the trains when it is reset.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) has ordered the park to retrain two of the ride's operators, but says that the collision "would not have happened during the operation of the ride with passengers on it."
Witnesses in the park reported hearing a "horrifically loud metallic sounding" crash which could be heard throughout Frontierland.
Last September, one person was killed and 10 others were injured when two trains collided on the same ride. OSHA faulted the park for improper maintenance and poorly trained employees. The ride was shut down, but reopened last month after state officials were satisfied that the park had taken the appropriate measures to correct its problems.
The ride closed Saturday after the accident, but reopened on Sunday.