PORTLAND, Ore. — The AtmosFEAR ride at Oaks Amusement Park resumed operations Tuesday, having completed a full inspection following a June 14 incident in which the pendulum-style ride got stuck at the highest point in its rotation, trapping 28 riders upside-down and 50 feet in the air for about 25 minutes.
The Oaks Park Association said in a news release that the ride's manufacturer, Zamperla, had found no issues, and both the manufacturer and a state-qualified independent inspector had cleared the ride to resume operations.
But an inspection report filed with the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services suggests the situation is a little more complicated.
The association stated that Zamperla had inspected the software, hardware and structure of the ride and found no mechanical, technical or maintenance issues, and had also concluded based on software data that the June 14 incident was not caused by operator error.
But the association added that for the time being, the ride will only operate in 180° or 260° modes rather than the full 360° mode, meaning it won't reach the peak point where it got stuck on June 14.
The inspection report from International Leisure Consulting Inc. sheds more light on the thinking behind that decision. The form, obtained through a public records request, states that the ride's controls have been changed to prevent it from going completely upside down and the change will remain in place until "the manufacturer comes up with a software upgrade."
The association's news release did not include any other information about what caused the ride to get stuck in the first place, and the inspection form offers no additional information in that regard.
Asked for clarification about the pending software update or whether software played a role in the ride getting stuck at its apex, Oaks Park told KGW, "Due to pending litigation, we cannot offer additional comment at this time."
The resumption of operations comes as Oaks Park is already facing one lawsuit over the June 14 incident with more potentially on the way. The mother of one of the trapped riders filed a $125,000 lawsuit on behalf of her 14-year-old daughter last week, alleging that she and other riders feared for their lives and suffered trauma and physical injuries due to being stuck upside down.
The lawsuit states that riders were "screaming for their lives, throwing up, crying, passing out, and praying to God for 25 minutes until the ride was finally lowered to the ground," and that the mother, Amy Yannotta, was "left with more questions than answers" after speaking with Oaks Park officials following the incident.
Portland attorney Jason Kafoury told KGW on Friday that he's been retained by three families relating to the ride incident, although at the time he had not yet filed any lawsuits.