It’s been almost a month since Disney announced it would be closing its theme parks and resorts and there’s no reopening date on the calendar yet. But that day will come. When it does things will be different as we all get used to the… Read More »Five big guest safety enhancements expected when Disney’s Parks and Resorts reopen
In 2003 congress put into place a law that restricted flights around Disney’s U.S. theme parks. There’s a 3-mile restricted zone from which helicopters and planes are prevented from entering. Originally put in place to prevent attacks from bad actors (mostly terrorists), the no-fly zone… Read More »Disneyland and Disney World’s No-Fly Zones Under Scrutiny
Good news from Disneyland Paris, the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction in which a 5-year old child was injured on Wednesday reopened for normal operations on Saturday. Authorities gave permission for the ride to reopen after it was found to be free of defects or… Read More »Disneyland Paris Reopens Pirates Attraction, Boy Released From Hospital
Is it time for Disneyland Paris to get an extreme theme park makeover? Parcorama makes a strong case for it. Last week I spent a couple of days at Disneyland Paris. Just before the summer season, when the resort state and program usually is at… Read More »Disneyland Paris Much in Need of TLC says Report
Update: Sunday 4/14/13 12pm PT – Just spoke with our contact at Disneyland and have a new story with important updates to the below post:
Update: Sunday 4/14/13 9am PT– Disneyland opened today with the Matterhorn Bobsleds running. Space Mountain and Soarin’ over California remain closed, according to Disney PR. Yesterday’s Matterhorn closure may have been unrelated to CAL/OSHA inspection. I’m hearing more inspections could happen over the next few days. Still awaiting official statement from Disneyland PR.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (CAL/OSHA) delivered seven safety violation citations to the Disneyland resort yesterday for Space Mountain. For some reason (update: the closures were made voluntarily by Disneyland after an internal safety review), this has resulted in three major attractions to be closed at the Disneyland Resort today. Those attractions are Space Mountain, The Matterhorn Bobsleds, and Soarin’ Over California. It’s not yet clear if the Matterhorn and Soarin’ are related to the same CAL/OSHA filing. I’ve asked Disneyland for clarification.
The citations were related a 2006 agreement to make improvements and to inspections following recent accidents such as the man who was seriously injured while cleaning the outside of Space Mountain in November 2012. The findings include simple failures like not having a charged fire extinguisher and more serious ones like failure to protect employees from unsafe ladders or lack of railings preventing a fall hazard. Serious fines of up to $70,000 for each infraction could be levied if Disneyland does not comply immediately with the requests (although appeal is also an option). Total penalties for just the Space Mountain citations could reach over $230,000.
These are the same sort of hazards that forced Disneyland to close Alice in Wonderland until temporary scaffolding could be erected with guardrails. The park still hasn’t made permanent fixes there.
A worker performing cleaning work on the exterior of Disneyland’s Space Mountain was injured last Wednesday. The worker was cleaning the roof of the iconic attraction when one of the worker’s ropes came loose and he slid 20 feet at a 45 degree angle down… Read More »Space Mountain Worker Injured in Fall at Disneyland
One of the most popular portions of Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party is the ride of the Headless Horseman. A new video reveals just why it’s important that the parade route be completely clear of legs and feet during the run. The cell phone… Read More »Horse Falls During Headless Horseman Run at Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party
Our thoughts and wishes for a speedy recovery go out to the Disneyland maintenance worker who was hospitalized in critical condition after an after-hours accident at Space Mountain. The incident occurred on October 3rd after the park had closed. The cast member was putting an… Read More »Disneyland Cast Member Hospitalized After Accident at Space Mountain