Amusement Parks USA

MuggleNet | The World's #1 Harry Potter Site - Deathly Hallows, Half-Blood Prince, JK Rowling, and much more

MuggleNet | The World's #1 Harry Potter Site - Deathly Hallows, Half-Blood Prince, JK Rowling, and much more.

Orlando news stations have noticed that construction scaffolding surrounding Hogwarts Castle at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park has been removed. This is the first time we're getting a look at Hogwarts Castle without construction equipment blocking our view. Our guess is the exterior is finished! You can watch a brief video showing the completed castle at this link. The poor reporter almost trips over the phrases "invisibility cloak" and "hippogriff". Additionally, Orlando Park News has a comprehensive photo update showing the now scaffolding-free castle. The report also shows other areas of the park continuing to receive treatment. For more on the park, visit our Wizarding World info section!

Disney World monorail returns to service following electrical shortage

Disney World monorail returns to service following electrical shortage.

The Walt Disney World Monorail System resumed service this morning (Oct. 1) after an electrical shortage at the Magic Kingdom platform shut the system down on Sept. 30. According to Orlando Sentinel reporter Jason Garcia, who broke the news on his Twitter at about 10 a.m., all monorail lines serving Disney World's parks are back in service. The short in the control tower at the Magic Kingdom, which resulted in smoke, halted a train while it pulled into a station. Guests were able to make it off safely as a tractor towed the train to their stop. The Magic Kingdom and resort lines went out of service following the short, but the Epcot line remained open. Taking this safety measure was vital to Disney in order to decrease the chances of another tragedy like the July 5 monorail collision that killed 21-year-old monorail driver Austin Wuennenberg from occurring. Wuennenberg's death was the first fatality in the monorail system's 38 years of service.

Deputy under review after Disney employee Tasered - Florida AP - MiamiHerald.com

Deputy under review after Disney employee Tasered - Florida AP - MiamiHerald.com.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Officials say an Orange County deputy is under administrative review following reports that he gave his Taser stun gun to a Walt Disney World employee, who then shocked a co-worker. The sheriff's office reported Friday that Deputy Eric Jaros was working off duty Sept. 3 at one of the park's security offices when he let another person handle the device. Officials are still trying to figure out exactly what happened, but at some point, a 53-year-old man was hit in the chest with the stun gun. The man was not seriously injured, but paramedics had been called to the office. No criminal charges have been filed, and the deputy remains on duty.

Man dies at NY amusement park - BostonHerald.com

Man dies at NY amusement park - BostonHerald.com.

DARIEN CENTER, N.Y. — Divers have recovered the body of a 33-year-old Pennsylvania man from a lake at an amusement park in western New York. Police say William Sutherland of Bradford, Pa., had attended a concert at Darien Lake Theme Park Resort Friday night and became separated from his friends. They told police they spent several hours looking for him Friday night before reporting him missing on Saturday. Divers found the body around 1:30 a.m. Sunday in a small lake at the park, which is 25 miles east of Buffalo. The Genesee County sheriff’s office says the death is not considered suspicious.

Myrtle Beach ad firm sues park over $1.4 million bill - Local - The Sun News

Myrtle Beach ad firm sues park over $1.4 million bill - Local - The Sun News.

The local public relations company responsible for putting together the billboards, signage, flashing pins and print ads for Freestyle Music Park over the past several months is suing park owners for more than $1 million in unpaid marketing materials and services, according to officials and court documents. Brandon Advertising Inc., the owners of the Brandon Agency, filed a breach of contract complaint against FPI MB Entertainment, the owners of Freestyle Music Park, on Aug. 5 for services and materials totaling $1,403,876, documents showed. The complaint was filed due to anticipated challenges the park might face because of the "tough economy," the agency's president said in a statement.

Bus crash hurts 12 at Florida theme park - KOINLocal6.com

Bus crash hurts 12 at Florida theme park - KOINLocal6.com.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Officials say two buses have collided at Walt Disney World, leaving a dozen visitors with minor injuries. A Florida Highway Patrol report says one Disney bus rear-ended another Thursday afternoon. About 50 people were on both buses. The 12 injured passengers were taken to four nearby hospitals for treatment. The accident comes 11 days after 21-year-old monorail pilot Austin Wuennenberg died when another train accidentally backed into his train at the sprawling Orlando resort. The park's vast transit system shuttles thousands of visitors around the attraction each day.

Mini-train accident at Downtown Aquarium sends 31 people to the hospital - 7/12/09 - Houston News - abc13.com

Mini-train accident at Downtown Aquarium sends 31 people to the hospital - 7/12/09 - Houston News - abc13.com.

Just before 11pm Saturday, a mini-train at the Downtown Aquarium rear-ended another train. It's unclear how many people were on the trains, but 31 were injured. We're told all of the injuries were minor. Officials are looking into what caused the wreck. We received the following statement from Downtown Aquarium Chief Operating Officer James Hamilton: "We are currently trying to determine exactly what happened during last night's incident whereby one of the Downtown Aquarium's trains rear ended another train. Fortunately, it appears there were no serious injuries to passengers on board. There was minimal damage to the trains, and the ride will be open today."

What's Goin on - Wednesday

Image via Wikipedia

The family of Disney monorail driver Austin Wuennenberg held their memorial service for him today. More than 300 family, friends and co-workers gathered at the First United Methodist Church in Kissimmee, while hundreds more have paid tribute online by appending the hashtag #Austin to their Twitter posts. The NTSB reported today that Austin attempted to put his monorail in reverse in avoid an collision when Monorail Pink speed down the track in reverse toward his train. It appeared that Austin did everything in his power to protect himself and his train, up until the moment of his death. In happier news, Busch Gardens Williamsburg has released more details about this year's upcoming Christmastown celebration at the Virginia theme park. The event will feature a 45-foot lighted Christmas tree, a maze, special live holiday shows, as well as 11 of the park's rides. If you're an early riser planning a trip to Legoland, the SeaLife Aquarium next door is hosting a daily breakfast at 9 am in the aquarium's Ocean Journey Cafe. There's a feeding demonstration (of the fish - we'll assume you're familiar with how to feed yourself) as well as a Q & A with an aquarist. Admission to the aquarium is not required to eat at the cafe, so it's a nice way to get a glimpse. Finally, for those who want to keep this week's Michael Jackson tributes going, head to Universal Hollywood's CityWalk tomorrow at 7pm, where Universal will be screening "The Wiz" as well as the extended "Thriller" video, plus hosting a live dance retrospective.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Michael Jackson's Life & Legacy: Wiz Kid (1958-78) (mtv.com)
• Michael Jackson's Life & Legacy: Don't Stop (1979-81) (mtv.com)
• Michael Jackson's Life & Legacy: Global Superstar (1982-86) (mtv.com)
• U.S. theme parks debut new coasters, interactive attractions (thestar.com)
• Michael Jackson Lego tribute abandoned - but 'Thriller in Lego' is still on YouTube......... (nickburcher.com)
• Michael Jackson's career by numbers (telegraph.co.uk)

Power Outage At Six Flags Strands Riders - KTVI

Power Outage At Six Flags Strands Riders - KTVI.

EUREKA, MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com) - Update: The power is back on at the Six Flags Amusement Park in Eureka, MO. Some riders were stranded for more than an hour after a power outage Wednesday evening. Officials say power at the park failed around 9:00 Wednesday night. That's normally closing time, but there were still people on their last ride of the night. The power was restored around midnight. A Six Flags spokesperson says park employees escorted the remaining guests off rides and out of the park. The most difficult ride to clear was the Colossus Ferris Wheel, which had to be hand cranked to get everyone off. The last person was off the ride at about 10:15pm. There were no injuries reported.

Your Thanet News

Your Thanet News.

Campaigners hoping to remake Dreamland as a heritage amusement park have hit back at an article in a national newspaper calling for it to be flooded. Outspoken columnist Richard Morrison, writing in The Times, paraphrased poet John Betjeman's attack on the town of Slough by writing“Come friendly tides and flood Dreamland” before talking about "Margate's grotesquely tacky, yet unaccountably 'celebrated’amusement park [which] should have been torn down decades ago”. He continues his attack by saying plans for the park to be turned into a heritage site showcasing the fairgrounds of the past are "like being told that the NHS is acquiring medieval pliers for a return to heritage dentistry”. He claims:“The only pertinent question is not when or how – but why.” Mr Morrison then heralded villages in Norfolk and sites such as the Eden Project for their approach to attracting tourism. But Nick Laister, chairman of The Dreamland Trust, said the writer had got it all wrong. "What we are proposing is close to what he says is the best way forward," he stated. “We want to turn the seafront area into a top-class attraction with the amusement park just a part of it.