Space Mountain Temporarily Closed

[B3rlingirl]

Wow... that’s a pretty serious incident... someone was able to get off and it (probably?) wasn’t detected early enough...
I guess they’ll do a big safety upgrade for that ride...

But I am now wondering if they might reasses all the other rides for similar „problems“... there are a couple of other rides which might be troublesome if I think about it...Splash for example...
though long refurbs of E-ticket rides really is the last thing Disney needs this summer... ( I really don’t wanna imagine something like that...)

 

[yetiowine]

Okay so "hoax" was a misused term that I saw on Twitter earlier. I'm glad no one was actually or seriously injured.

 

[Wildtoad]

A man in his 20s purposefully wiggles out of his se

We fly in tonight for the weekend and will also be saddened if it's down. Looking at the app today, looks like half the attractions are temporarily closed today :-(

Rainy day and more in the forecast I'm afraid.

 

[Wildtoad]

.01 % ruins it for the other 99.99.

 

[Wildtoad]

Wow... that’s a pretty serious incident... someone was able to get off and it (probably?) wasn’t detected early enough...
I guess they’ll do a big safety upgrade for that ride...

But I am now wondering if they might reasses all the other rides for similar „problems“... there are a couple of other rides which might be troublesome if I think about it...Splash for example...
though long refurbs of E-ticket rides really is the last thing Disney needs this summer... ( I really don’t wanna imagine something like that...)

Yet these same restraints have worked for eons ... Even for children. This was failure to follow common sense safety rules not a failure on the restraints. I understand disability was involved but I'm sure thousands of people with cognitive disabilities have managed for the past few decades. For whatever reason this person chose to disregard the safety warnings and put himself at risk. I truly think this was unforeseeable but now Disney is "on notice" I'm predicting shoukder restraints which will make the ride less enjoyable.

 

[wareagle57]

Yet these same restraints have worked for eons ... Even for children. This was failure to follow common sense safety rules not a failure on the restraints. I understand disability was involved but I'm sure thousands of people with cognitive disabilities have managed for the past few decades. For whatever reason this person chose to disregard the safety warnings and put himself at risk. I truly think this was unforeseeable but now Disney is "on notice" I'm predicting shoukder restraints which will make the ride less enjoyable.

I just see no reason for that. It’s not a design flaw at all. I’ve been on countless rollercoasters I could get out of if I wanted to die, and I’m not a small guy. Does Big Thunder need shoulder harnesses too? I’m not saying you’re wrong that this will happen. But it’s such a stupid irrational reactionary society we live in when something like this is even considered.

 

[Wildtoad]

I just see no reason for that. It’s not a design flaw at all. I’ve been on countless rollercoasters I could get out of if I wanted to die, and I’m not a small guy. Does Big Thunder need shoulder harnesses too? I’m not saying you’re wrong that this will happen. But it’s such a stupid irrational reactionary society we live in when something like this is even considered.

I agree... I hope I'm wrong...but these days...who knows. Hopefully Disney is just doing a CYA and level heads will prevail and call this what it was... Guest error! This was literally a needle in the haystack scenario. Common sense has gone out the window though especially when liability over safety is concerned. If this man was too disabled to handle this ride why was he on it? Where was his caretaker? Was there noone sitting next to him to stop him? I mean ...he got off on the least stressful part of the ride (unless maybe it was ironically the lighting effects and not the motion that set him off?) Thank goodness it happened there and not at high speed.

 

[sherilaine]

I am in the insurance industry....and unfortunate as this is - it doesn't surprise me - as 'sue happy' as the legal system is in the United States, they would most definitely be covering their behinds!

This is not negligence on the part of Disney though - but the best thing they can do is get that proven ahead of someone, even someone who is completely at fault, lawyering up and coming back to see what they can get from all of this!

 

[Wildtoad]

Yeah... With SM scheduled for refurb in less than 4 weeks anyway... I could see them just closing it now with a "pardon our pixie dust" disclaimer. We have a trip in late Feb. and have been disappointed to see WOC, Fantasmic, paint the night and others go on the list of unavailable attractions ... even the castle is behind walls and scrim. Apparently lower crowds also equals more refurbs. It is so bad we might actually have to end our boycott at Hyperion and actually watch Frozen cause everything else is closed! (yeah... I'm still not over Aladdin closing). Ok just kidding... I will watch paint dry before I go to the frozen show! We will go and still make a great time I'm sure ... but not in a hurry to rebook. Just glad we locked in before the price increases.

 

[Geemo]

Yeah... With SM scheduled for refurb in less than 4 weeks anyway... I could see them just closing it now with a "pardon our pixie dust" disclaimer. We have a trip in late Feb. and have been disappointed to see WOC, Fantasmic, paint the night and others go on the list of unavailable attractions ... even the castle is behind walls and scrim. Apparently lower crowds also equals more refurbs. It is so bad we might actually have to end our boycott at Hyperion and actually watch Frozen cause everything else is closed! (yeah... I'm still not over Aladdin closing). Ok just kidding... I will watch paint dry before I go to the frozen show! We will go and still make a great time I'm sure ... but not in a hurry to rebook. Just glad we locked in before the price increases.

Frozen is generally my (adult) nap in the park time....
It's prefect on a hot day.

I miss Aladdin too.

 

[Cal-Pie]

It was mentioned in another thread, but Space is not on the refurb calendar on 3/15 (following the scheduled refurb). It will be interesting to see how this closure plays into the refurb.

 

[YayforMickey]

So, every day until today, the Space Mountain page on the Disneyland website has said that it would be closed for refurbishment starting February 25.

Today, the wording changed, and it says "From February 25 to March 15, 2019, Space Mountain will be closed for refurbishment." I don't want to get my hopes up for Space Mountain next week, but I feel a bit more hopeful now. It seems like they wouldn't make the refurbishment more specific if the ride wasn't coming back before February 25th.

Of course, that could just be automated.

https://disneyland.disney.go.com/attractions/disneyland/space-mountain

 

[sherilaine]

So, every day until today, the Space Mountain page on the Disneyland website has said that it would be closed for refurbishment starting February 25.

Today, the wording changed, and it says "From February 25 to March 15, 2019, Space Mountain will be closed for refurbishment." I don't want to get my hopes up for Space Mountain next week, but I feel a bit more hopeful now. It seems like they wouldn't make the refurbishment more specific if the ride wasn't coming back before February 25th.

Of course, that could just be automated.

I am not getting my hopes up at all - our first park day will be Feb 12th. This is a complete unknown - perhaps they know for 100% sure it will be offline between Feb 25 and March 15th but I don't think anyone knows the status of the ride from today until Feb 25th. And it's likely not Disney's decision to make - they are at the mercy of inspectors right now. Hopefully common sense prevails but that is yet another reason why my expectations are crawling along the ground right now...

 

[DLgal]

If this man was too disabled to handle this ride why was he on it? Where was his caretaker? Was there noone sitting next to him to stop him? I mean ...he got off on the least stressful part of the ride (unless maybe it was ironically the lighting effects and not the motion that set him off?) Thank goodness it happened there and not at high speed.

As I understand it, this was a group of disabled adults out on a park trip together, likely part of a group home or community based special needs adult day program. There are always "chaperones" on these excursions, but not on a 1:1 ratio. These types of groups are usually made up of adults who are semi-independent, verbal, and able to communicate, not completely incapacitated. Orange County has a very extensive support program for adults with disabilities (part of the reason we live here, for our own children's future needs). I see these groups out often in the community at different places. My guess is that this particular guest, for whatever reason, just panicked. It happens, but without the mental capacity to think rationally in the situation, the "fight or flight" response takes over and it becomes (in the person's mind) a matter of survival. I supposed it happened so fast that whoever was sitting next to him/her just had no way to react, and likely, another disabled adult (part of the group) was sitting next to the person anyway, and would have not reacted in a typical way.

 

[SherylLC]

https://comicbook.com/2019/02/01/di...n-shut-down-closed-park-guest-jumps-off-ride/

 

[YayforMickey]

I am not getting my hopes up at all - our first park day will be Feb 12th. This is a complete unknown - perhaps they know for 100% sure it will be offline between Feb 25 and March 15th but I don't think anyone knows the status of the ride from today until Feb 25th. And it's likely not Disney's decision to make - they are at the mercy of inspectors right now. Hopefully common sense prevails but that is yet another reason why my expectations are crawling along the ground right now...

Yeah, it sounds like Disney won't know anything until CalOSHA gives their report.

 

[YayforMickey]

The app has shown it as open for the last twenty minutes. At first I thought it was a glitch, but the fast passes have changed from 10:00 to 10:30 as I've been watching it. I'm nervous to believe it could be open already.

 

[Speedracer5]

If the refurbishment is slated for 2/25-3/15 that is exciting. Space Mountain was closed the last time my husband and I went (Labor Day weekend 2017) for the Halloween overlay installation. Haunted Mansion has been closed the last two times we went (Labor Day Weekend 2012 & 2017) for the Halloween installation. This year, we're going 4/7-4/11, so I'm crossing my fingers that both attractions are open.

The app is currently showing a 45 minute wait for Space Mountain. Cal OSHA must have given them the go-ahead to re-open.

 

[sherilaine]

Fingers crossed the app is right.

 

[wareagle57]

If the refurbishment is slated for 2/25-3/15 that is exciting. Space Mountain was closed the last time my husband and I went (Labor Day weekend 2017) for the Halloween overlay installation. Haunted Mansion has been closed the last two times we went (Labor Day Weekend 2012 & 2017) for the Halloween installation. This year, we're going 4/7-4/11, so I'm crossing my fingers that both attractions are open.

The app is currently showing a 45 minute wait for Space Mountain. Cal OSHA must have given them the go-ahead to re-open.

Where have you seen the 3/15 reported as the end of the refub? That is exciting if true. I've only seen TBD. Same with GRR which I'm also anxiously waiting for a reopening date for.