A jury has awarded $550,000 to two teenage girls who were left hanging upside down for approximately 30 minutes when a ride malfunctioned at Oaks Park in Portland, Oregon. The verdict, reached this week, awarded each teen $275,000 in their case against Oaks Park and ride manufacturer Zamperla.
The incident occurred on June 14, 2024, on the AtmosFEAR ride, a spinning pendulum-style attraction. About 30 riders were stranded upside down when the ride became stuck in a vertical position on the park's opening day for the summer season. Videos from the scene showed riders suspended vertically as onlookers gathered below.
Emergency crews and park engineers worked to manually lower the ride. The riders were safely brought down after about 25 minutes and received medical evaluations. Oaks Park stated that safety is its top priority and that it continues to work with ride manufacturers and state inspectors to ensure rider safety.
The family of one of the teens stated that the lawsuit aimed to establish accountability, citing a lack of a safety plan at Oaks Park. They claimed the park did not have the proper knowledge or tools to address a malfunction of the ride in its inverted position, necessitating a call to a manufacturer and a wait for first responders to arrive with necessary equipment. Additionally, they noted that the park's evacuation procedures did not include traffic control, which they asserted delayed emergency personnel.
Oaks Park is one of the oldest continuously operating amusement parks in the United States. Representatives for Zamperla and Oaks Park did not immediately respond to requests for comment.