Disneyland Deaths and Injuries

January 1975
January 1975—Three youths are shot in Tomorrowland in the park’s first reported large-scale gang fight.

January 1979January 1979—An employee working on the Matterhorn attraction slipped while trying to release a bobsled during a breakdown. His foot went under the track and the sled ran over it, tearing the top and pulverizing the bones. A co-worker removed his own shirt, wrapped the injured foot, and called for an ambulance.

March 1985
March 1985—A 17-year-old girl breaks both legs and fractures an arm after she falls from her wheelchair onto a moving platform at the Haunted Mansion ride.

February 1990
February 12, 1990 6:08 p.m.—Nayeli Diana Placentia’s an 8-year-old girl was hit in the back by an apparent stray bullet as she rode the Disneyland Railroad in the Fantasyland section of the Anaheim park. The train was pulling to a stop at the Videopolis train station
Anaheim Police Lt. John Cross said the shot apparently was fired from outside the park but there were no reports of shootings in the area. February 13—Surgeons removed a medium caliber bullet that embedded in the lower right portion of Nayeli Diana Placentia’s back.

March 1990
March 31, 1990—A 13-year-old Canadian girl is injured when a support arm on the Dumbo Flying Elephant Ride collapses.

October 1990
October 1990—A construction worker at Disneyland is critically injured when he falls 30 feet from scaffolding in the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.

January 1991
January 1991—An 11 year old boy is thrown from the Mad Tea Cups and struck by a second cup. He sustained a fractured spine, shoulder injury and nerve damage in one arm.

August 1992
August 1992—A 5 year old boy who fell into the waters of Jungle Cruise. The boy was boarding the boat when an attendant allegedly became distracted while helping him on board.

August 1994—A jury awards $21,120 to a boy who fell into the waters of Jungle Cruise

January 1993
January 1993—During a performance of Fantasmic, a four-year-old and a 21-year-old got struck in the eye by a burning firework, and a 16-year-old said a bright blue light came toward him, and people started shouting, "Get it off! You’re on fire!" He arrived at the First Aid station with red, swollen eyes, purple burn marks on his neck and holes "just like acid burns" in his jacket, according to the accident report.

February 1993
February 1993—Two children are treated for scratches and bruises at the Toontown attraction after a chandelier at Goofy’s Bounce House comes loose and falls on them.

April 1994
April 17,1994—A visitor falls 20 feet from the Skyway ride, tumbling into a tree.

June 1994
June 1994—A 15-year-old boy trips and falls 15 feet off the monorail at the Disneyland Hotel. The Santa Maria boy suffers a fractured elbow and other injuries.

January 1995
January 1995—A 41-year-old woman going down the Chip ‘n Dale Tree Slide struck her left knee on a decorative acorn on the side railing. The woman had to have arthroscopic surgery and a kneecap replacement.

February 1995
February 1995—A musician is severely hurt by an out-of-control float in the Lion King Parade. The float smashed the employee into an iron fence.

April 1995
April 19, 1995—Robin Paulson, 49, alleges that she and her four children were grabbed, shaken, kicked and punched, by at least five Disneyland guards.

July 1995
July 1995—A 17-year-old Anaheim girl working as a hostess on the Star Tours ride fractures her skull after falling onto the concrete floor. She had been ordered to climb out on a darkened catwalk to retrieve a fallen brochure.

August 1995
August 17,1995—Billie Jean Matay and her daughter, Denise Bennett, and the three children were robbed after visting the park. The family was climbing into their sport- utility vehicle to go home when, she felt what she later realized was a gun against her neck. Matay said the two robbers, who were not caught, got away with jewelry, credit cards, $165 and driver’s licenses after holding the family captive as long as 10 minutes.

May 1997
May 17,1997 5:30 p.m.—The Gullywhumper (Keel Boat) loaded with 49 guests (normal maximum capacity is 32) began rocking from side to side while on a routine trip around the island. The Gullywhumper tipped over, dunking a boatload of guests into the Rivers of America. Several guests were treated for minor injuries at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange. Following the accident, the Gullywhumper was removed from the water for inspection.

November 1997
November 1997—A crane being used during renovation of the Matterhorn mountain topples in the early morning, injuring one construction worker. The park was closed at the time.

December 1998
An untrained supervisor tried to stop the Sailing Ship Columbia by tying down a mooring rope. The cleat ripped off the hull, flying into the crowd, killing one person.

January 1998
January 1998—David Fackler, 5, suffered a serious foot injury at the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. His toes are later amputated

November 1998
November 28,1998—Deborah Bynum of San Diego alleges a brain hemorrhage was caused by the Indiana Jones ride

June 21, 2001—Deborah Bynum settled a lawsuit out of court

December 1998
December 24,1998—A 4-year-old boy from the Palos Verdes Peninsula was taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange after he fell off the carousel. He suffered from a concussion.

February 1999
February 22,1999 8:20a.m.—Three Disneyland employees were injured in a behind-the-scenes accident when the golf cart they were riding in turned over. Five members of Disneyland’s "facilities cast," who do chores like painting and cleanup, were leaving after a shift that began at midnight. Two of the riders were unhurt, and two were treated for minor injuries at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, The driver was taken to the University of California, Irvine, Medical Center for examination.

April 2000
April 18, 2000 10:30 p.m.—A Lake Forest teenager whose leg was caught beneath Roger Rabbit’s Cartoon Spin ride is being described as a "lucky little girl" by hospital officials and paramedics, who said that she suffered no broken bones or serious cuts. The 13-year-old was on Roger Rabbit’s Cartoon Spin ride when her lower right leg became lodged under the fiberglass passenger bucket, officials said. A Disney spokesman said the girl, climbed out of her seat while the ride was moving. She was trying to fetch a stuffed toy that had apparently fallen out of the car. Disneyland spokesman Ray Gomez said the girl managed to slip out from under her lap bar before stepping out of the car. "She was trying to retrieve this toy, but in doing so her foot became wedged between the car and the floor," Gomez said. Anaheim Fire Department spokesman Jerry Austin said paramedics freed the girl’s leg within a few minutes. "It didn’t take much time at all, and her injuries were very minor," Austin said. The girl was taken to Western Medical Center in Anaheim, where she was seen and released within an hour, hospital spokesman Ron Bingham said. "For having her leg stuck under an amusement park ride, she was pretty lucky," he said. "There really wasn’t any treatment given. She didn’t have a fracture, she didn’t need a cast and she didn’t need any stitches. We released her to her parents just after midnight."

July 2000
July 31, 2000—A car on the Space Mountain coaster stopped suddenly when a wheel support arm came loose. The safety system on the ride, which reaches a maximum speed of about 30 mph as it winds its way through a half-mile course, stopped other cars. The lights in darkened Space Mountain were turned on and everyone was evacuated. Jonathan Woodcock suffered 13 bulging disks, nerve damage from the base of his neck to the bottom of his spine, a dislocated jaw, cracked teeth, a ripped right rotator cuff and joint disorder. His wife suffered a collapsed arch in her right foot; permanent damage to her right knee, hip and shoulder; and two herniated disks

July 31, 2001—Jonathan and Julie Woodcock, file a lawsuit against Disney

August 2000
August 8, 2000—An operator dispatches a log on Splash Mountain before Yvonne Traina, 67, was strapped in, causing her to be thrown "rapidly backward" in her seat. When she screamed and he stopped the ride, she was thrown forward. After the ride, Traina said she complained of back pain, and a theme park nurse gave her an ice pack and an Advil. Her doctor later diagnosed her with a bulging disk, and she says she was left with consistent pain in her lower back and legs.

May 2001—Yvonne Traina files suit against Disney

October 28, 2002—Disney settles lawsuit with Yvonne Traina

September 2000
September 22, 2000—Brandon Zucker, 4, did not have a pulse when paramedics arrived after he fell off the Roger Rabbit Car Toon Spin Ride. "With a resuscitative efforts his vital signs improved," Dr. Marianne Cinat "His injuries include a left diaphragmatic tear, a collapsed left lung, a small tear to the liver and to the spleen, and a left sided pelvic fracture." The four-year-old was sitting closest to opening by his mother who was behind the wheel of the spin ride. The black safety lap bar was lowered. Brandon dropped something. When he reached down to pick it up, he fell out of the ride and was pinned underneath the car. He was trapped underneath it for 10 minutes before paramedics pried him out.

September 25, 2000—Brandon Zucker remains in a medically induced coma.

December 20, 2000—Brandon Zucker is back in the hospital. The 4-year-old has been living in a long-term care facility in Orange, but he was returned to UC-Irvine Medical Center this week because of complications from his injury.He’s being treated at UC-Irvine for swelling of the brain.

February 1, 2002—The Walt Disney Co. finalized a settlement with the family of Brandon Zucker. No terms were released, and the court records were sealed as a condition of the settlement.

December 2000
December 21,2000 11:37a.m.—Blake Borbeck a 15-year-old Mesa Arizona boy’s foot apparently became stuck between the ride’s caterpillar-shaped car and a 3-inch- high horizontal bar that keeps the cars on the track, on Alice in Wonderland ride. The boy suffered a fractured foot and minor scratches and abrasions to his ankle and heel. His foot was splinted at the scene and he was later transported to a Western Medical Center in Anaheim for treatment.The accident occurred toward the end of the ride, near the top of the exterior, winding portion, according to Anaheim police.

December 20,2001—The family of Blake Borbeck filed a lawsuit against Disneyland in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

January 2001
January 21,2001—A 6-year-old girl lost most of an index finger while playing with a toy rifle on Tom Sawyer Island at Disneyland. Anaheim paramedics report on the incident said Priscilla slipped and that her finger had gotten caught in the trigger. Priscilla Figueroa was rushed to UCI Medical Center in Orange after the accident, but doctors were unable to reattach the portion of her left index finger, hospital spokeswoman Kim Pine said. She is right-handed

January 22, 2001—Priscilla Figueroa, was discharged from the hospital .

January 2001
January 30, 2001—33-year-old Melanie Hershock was injured on Disneylands Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. Hershock, slipped and hit her head on one of the boat’s plastic benches while trying to climb out. She was holding her 16-month-old baby at the time. The baby was not hurt. Hershock was taken to Western Medical Center in Anaheim, complaining of a headache and neck pains, and was later released. State investigators found that the boat stopped before it should have. When some passengers stood up to disembark, "the boat then moved forward to its final stop, and it threw some of them off balance."

May 2001
May 4,2001 17:15—Twenty-seven people suffered minor injuries when a tree fell at Disneyland. A tree, A 20-foot oak, fell and injured a group of visitors at Disneyland on Friday. Firefighters were treating as many as a dozen children and adults. Jeanne Gill, 73 suffered a fractured pelvis. The uprooted tree lay on the ground in Frontierland near Golden Horseshoe Revue and the loading dock for one of the Rivers of America rides. A popcorn kiosk parked in the area partially broke the tree’s fall. Many of the victims had been standing beside a popcorn kiosk. The tree was believed to have been in the park since it opened and was probably more than 40 years old, weather may have been a factor. About five of the injured guests remained pinned beneath the heavy cork oak following the accident, while bystanders tried to lift the fallen tree. Fifteen of the injured were taken to hospitals, but city paramedics said all the injuries were minor. Three children, ages 2, 3 and 4 and two employees were among the injured. In all, 10 ambulances transported victims to area hospitals. The area was closed off after the accident and ambulances and police officers arrived. The park team was on the scene within four minutes. Frontierland remained closed while work crews used chain saws to chop and remove the tree.

August 2002
August 29, 2002—at about 4:30 p.m., the attraction triggered a standard "cascade ride stop," which is supposed to stop the rockets, one at a time, as they enter the next brake zone. Unfortunately, one rocket shot through one of the last brake zones without stopping—and smashed into the rear of a rocket that had been stopped just before the station.
"We had the usual cascade, but one of the brakes didn’t brake a rocket when it should have, and a collision happened in the (reentry) tunnel," confirms a ride operator. "Brakes not braking just doesn’t happen. It’s very bizarre."
The State of California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) described the cause only as a "malfunction." A cast member said Facilities suspected a faulty sensor was to blame.
According to DOSH spokesman Dean Fryer, seven passengers suffered injuries, all minor. "Four (guests) were taken to area hospitals as a precautionary measure, looked at, and released to return to the park," he said. "Three others sought medical attention a day later."

April 2003
April 30, 2003—A 4-year-old boy was hurt when he fell in front of the cars on the Autopia ride at Disneyland. Dean Fryer, a spokesman for the California Department of Occupational Safety & Health, said the boy suffered minor injuries. The boy, who was not named, was taken to UCI Medical Center, said Disneyland spokeswoman Marilyn Waters. Fryer said the boy was running on the loading platform when he slipped and fell in front of slow-moving cars. "The boy is lucky he wasn’t injured more," he said. The ride reopened in the afternoon.

ORIGIN: https://www.dldhistory.com/list.asp?Tab=Disneyland&Page=24&Sort=Item&Dir=A