The world’s tallest waterslide will be torn down after a 10-year-old boy was decapitated while riding it back in August.
The Verrückt ride, a 17-story slide located at the Schlitterbahn water park in Kansas City, Kansas, has not been open since the incident – unsurprisingly – but a spokesperson for the park has now confirmed it will be completely dismantled:
Once the investigation is concluded and we are given permission by the court, Verrückt will be decommissioned — closed permanently and the slide removed from the tower. In our opinion, it is the only proper course of action following this tragedy.
10-year-old Caleb Schwab, who was the son of a Kansas state senator, was killed on the ride on August 10.
Though authorities and the park were quite restrained in releasing information about the incident, a source familiar with the investigation told the Associated Press that Schwab had been decapitated on the ride – opening up serious questions as to how it could have happened, and what kind of safety oversights led to such serious injury.
The slide had passed a privately-administered safety inspection in June, though some had privately expressed concerns – with one rider saying that restraints occasionally popped loose, and staff would allow groups on who were lighter than the required collective weight.
The company has not said what will replace the ride.
Source: Buzzfeed.
Photo: Getty Images.
