Man sues Disney World after ‘permanently’ injuring himself on waterslide that didn’t support his weight
A man is suing Disney World for negligence and seeking more than $50,000 in damages as he claims a waterslide left him with permanent injuries.
Eugene Strickland filed the complaint on Thursday (29 May) about a visit that took place almost four years ago in July 2021.
According to Strickland, the incident took place on the Downhill Double Dipper water slide at the Florida resort's Blizzard Beach park.
The ride in question sees thrill-seekers ‘disappear into a black hole and plummet 50 feet downhill at exhilarating speeds’ as they race against each other.
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The official Disney website explains that riders wait on inner tubes at the top of twin enclosed waterslides.
Then, the gates retract and you ‘hurtle through darkness, then emerge just in time for the big splashdown.’
Due to being over the ride’s weight limit, Strickland claims he became ‘momentarily airborne’ while going down the slide, which has left him with ‘permanent catastrophic injuries as a result’.
He said the tube 'became forcibly, suddenly, and unexpectedly dislodged' from under him.
This caused him to 'land with force onto the hard plastic surface of the slide’ and therefore injure himself.
The suit explains that Strickland was roughly 34lbs heavier than the attraction's 300lb weight limit at the time.
However, it’s unclear whether or not he was aware or warned of the ride’s weight restriction before he decided to give it a go.
The suit brands the waterslide a 'dangerous condition, safety hazard, and concealed trap’ and accuses Disney of keeping it open without the proper repairs being done, MailOnline reports.
He added that the issue lay with 'deficient, inadequate, ineffective, or under-inflated inner tubes.’
Outlining the supposed damage, Strickland’s lawyers wrote: “These injuries are permanent and continuing within a degree of medical probability, and Plaintiff will suffer these losses in the future.”
He explained that he ‘suffered serious bodily injury and resulting pain and suffering, disability, scarring, disfigurement, mental anguish, [and] loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life'.
Strickland also outlined that he believes the accident would not have happened if the ride and its equipment had been properly maintained.
A jury trial is scheduled for May 2027 and Walt Disney World is yet to respond publicly to the lawsuit.
The Downhill Double Dipper opened in April 1995 and is located in Blizzard Beach, which was the third water park to be built at the resort after River Country and Typhoon Lagoon.
Tyla has contacted Disney World for comment.
Madison Burgess