Theme park ride closed after 'emergency stop' leaves people injured

Several people have been left injured following an 'emergency stop' on a ride at a UK theme park.

Riders on Bounce at Pembrokeshire's Oakwood Theme Park were reeling after the ride was forced into an 'emergency stop on Wednesday (July 10). People onboard have claimed the stop saw the ride quickly drop to ground level.

Bounce, which was reopened in 2022 after being out of operation since 2016, is a drop tower-style attraction that propels participants roughly 45m into the sky before plummeting back down and then returning upward once more. The park's online description characterises it as a "gravity-defying, stomach-lurching shot 'n' drop tower ride", reports WalesOnline.

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A guest on board the ride when the incident happened on Wednesday afternoon claimed there were around 20 people on the ride when it "fell to the floor without slowing down". They said school-age children were "screaming and crying" as the ride "went up and down a few times" before it "fell quickly to the ground from about halfway up the tower".

The guest, who did not want to be named, claimed around eight people received first aid treatment on site while four others visited hospital for further treatment. Oakwood Theme Park confirmed they were aware of the incident and confirmed the ride would remain closed while they consulted the ride manufacturer. The park said that the incident arose as a result of a "programmed Emergency Stop Procedure".

Describing the incident, the park guest claimed the way the incident was handled was "awful", and claimed they only stopped and helped people who "complained of pain or anything wrong". They added: "There have been no apologies