Rye Playland Audited

The NY Journal News has posted [PDF, also here: Download RyeAudit.pdf] the report from an audit of the Playland amusement park in Rye, New York, which has had a tragic run of fatalities in recent years.  The audit is quite interesting in parts and raises -- from a non-legal perspective -- some interesting issues relating to warnings.

Probably the most striking discussion is in the section relating to the Old Mill dark ride, where a young  boy, riding along, apparently panicked and got out of the boat a couple of years ago, ultimately dying in the ride under unclear circumstances.  (I don't mean the "unclear" to suggest a cover-up or anything like that -- it's just impossible to know exactly what happened.)  Here's the section from the audit (note the encouragement to consult counsel at the end):

The "overall observations" section at the end is worth reading.  All in all, it seems that Rye's operational problems (that may have contributed to at least some past accidents) have improved.  Even if you're not interested in amusement safety as such, the audit may make for interesting reading and/or a good basis for a Torts hypothetical.

--BC