Damaged waterslide injures user

Incident overview

Incident occurred on a waterslide. Sectional joint failed. Fiberglass resin had protruded above the waterslide running surface. Slider came into contact with protrusion.

Regulated industry sector

Amusement Devices‐ Waterslide

Location

Chilliwack, BC

Investigation conclusions

Site, system and components

Normal operation of a waterslide is, a slider travels down a smooth contoured fiberglass surface and experiences the twists and turns of the waterslide.

Failure scenario(s)

Maintenance had been performed several times at the same location on past occasions. The location of the failure is a point within the waterslide which experiences higher impact from the slider on a regular basis.

Facts and evidence

Waterpark reported: “a fiberglass area had lifted at the joint”

Daily maintenance log records 4 calls for repairs to the same location.

Repair to the location was done prior to this investigation.

Causes and contributing factors

As there have been several maintenance repairs at this location, a permanent solution to the failure may have prevented this incident from happening.

Conclusion: A permanent solution to the failure would reduce the possibility to a low level.

Probability: Better maintenance would reduce the possibility of this type of incident from happening again.

Impact

• Injury
  • Qty injuries: 1
  • Injury description: Individual stated:, ”He had a cut on his back”. Reported by waterpark. ”Long scratch/cut on his back/shoulder area”
  • Injury rating: Minor
• Damage
  • Damage description: As reported by the waterpark, “After we shut down the park for the day we discovered that an area of fiberglass had lifted from the joint”
  • Damage rating: None

Incident rating

Minor