Seven people were injured in an accident on Monday at Germany’s biggest theme park, police said – the second alarming incident there in just three months.
The accident unfolded at the Europa-Park in the town of Rust, near the French and Swiss borders, when a mobile pool cracked and wrenched apart the diving platforms attached to it.
The force sent several acrobats, who were performing a pirate show, tumbling through the air before they smashed into the water some 25 feet below.
Moments later the stage collapsed, with various parts of the platform and scaffolding crumbling into the water, narrowly missing the helpless and bewildered performers.
Police said that five performers and two visitors were injured in the accident, adding that three of the performers were taken to a hospital for additional treatment.
The cause of the accident wasn’t immediately clear.
The park is a popular tourist attraction that drew more than 6 million visitors last year, mostly from Germany, France and Switzerland.
It has areas with themes based on different European countries, and three based on fantasy settings. The park also hosts conferences and is a popular venue for events and television productions.
But it has now suffered two worrying accidents in less than three months.
In June, a large fire broke out, prompting a park-wide evacuation of 25,000 people.
Video footage showed a huge mushroom of black smoke billowing from inside the amusement park, as shocked visitors stood watching the flames from afar.
People were seen flocking in their droves away from the park while others stood filming the flames.
‘It banged loudly two or three times. After that a huge fire could be seen,’ an eyewitness said.
[Daily Mail – original article]
[Picture – Facebook Freshma Fadarkhan]
