Press Releases

IAAPA and National Safety Council Publish Ride Safety Material, Including Initial Results of IAAPA’s Incident Reporting System

ALEXANDRIA, VA. USA (Jun. 20, 2003) – The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) today announced the publication of information and statistics on U.S. fixed-site amusement ride safety. The information is published in the June-July issue of the National Safety Council (NSC) publication Injury Insights (for free download of necessary Adobe Acrobat software, please click here first).

Included in the publication are initial injury data from IAAPA’s nationwide incident reporting system, summaries of recent scientific studies focusing on industry safety, and a discussion of how design practices are helping the industry to produce safer recreational activities.

" The amusement industry has brought together numerous key safety documents in one place, and we are pleased to publish this information and make it available to all who are interested," said NSC President Alan C. McMillan.

" A great deal has happened in the world of amusement ride safety over the past few years, and we just feel it’s the right time to bring all this material together so that, from a variety of angles, anyone can see for themselves how the industry’s safety record compares with other recreational activities," said IAAPA President J. Clark Robinson. "A well-known and well-respected organization like the National Safety Council is a perfect partner for this endeavor, so we feel very fortunate that they were interested in publishing this information."

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has annually collected fixed-site amusement ride injury statistics based upon its NEISS system. This method uses data from more than 100 of an estimated 5,000 U.S. hospital emergency rooms. To gain an additional perspective, IAAPA developed a voluntary incident reporting system for its member facilities. Data has now been collected for the 2001-02 period and has been augmented by further independent statistical analysis to provide an annual injury estimate for the overall fixed amusement ride sector in the U.S. The result, detailed in the feature article of Injury Insights, is an estimated average of 2,486 injuries per year among the more than 300 million people attending amusement facilities with fixed rides annually (click here for an executive summary of this particular article).

The publication also includes summaries of four recent independent scientific studies that analyzed the issue of amusement ride g-forces and brain injury. Each of the studies ultimately reached the same conclusion: rotational accelerations experienced by the head during rides pose no risk of brain injury to the general populace. Also included in the publication are articles discussing the design principles and technological advances that underpin ride safety, and a list of safety tips for amusement park visitors.

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The National Safety Council is a not-for-profit, nongovernmental, international public service organization dedicated to protecting life and promoting health. Founded in 1913, and chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1953, the NSC is comprised of more than 37,500 member organizations, including businesses, labor organizations, schools, public agencies, private groups and individuals. For additional information about the National Safety Council, visit http://www.nsc.org.

IAAPA is the largest international trade association for permanently situated amusement facilities worldwide. The organization represents over 4,500 facility, supplier, and individual members from more than 90 countries. IAAPA strives to help members improve their efficiency, marketing, safety, and profitability while maintaining the highest possible professional standards in the industry. www.iaapa.org