Sad day at the earliest beginning of the thirty-year history of PortAventura, coinciding with the carnival. Fourteen people were injured yesterday morning after a tree fell near the Tomahawk roller coaster, just as one of the trains was passing. The strong gusts of wind, with a peak of 71 kilometers per hour recorded in Vila-seca in the morning, caused the tree to fall, according to the first investigations of the Mossos d’Esquadra.
At the time of the accident, at 11:30 a.m., the wind was blowing at around 45 km/h. This is not an exceptional wind in this area of ??Camp de Tarragona, accustomed to this meteorological phenomenon. Civil Protection had activated the Ventcat plan during the alert phase, without restricting any outdoor activity.
The branches hit some of the passengers on the ride, although the tree did not fall on the tracks of the roller coaster. In fact, the damaged train was able to complete its route and did not derail. The tree blown over by the wind was heavily tilted at one point of the Tomahawk’s route, with part of the branch at the level of the heads and bodies of the passengers of the roller coaster.
Two of the injured were still admitted in critical condition last night. His prognosis is reserved, according to medical sources at the close of this edition.
One of these two critically injured was taken by helicopter to the hospital in Bellvitge (Barcelona) with head trauma caused by the impact of the branches. The second critically injured man suffered a maxillofacial trauma, from hitting his face against the tree, and is admitted to the Joan XXIII hospital in Tarragona. The condition of the other twelve injured is more favorable. A total of nine passengers were treated by the medical services at the scene of the accident, with minor injuries. Five more passengers (four adults and one minor) had to be taken to various hospitals in Tarragona and Reus by ambulances from the Medical Emergency Service (EMS). One of them was discharged yesterday afternoon itself.
The accident took place in the Far West area, next to another roller coaster, but of greater height and speed, the Stampida. The park remained open yesterday after the disaster, with apparent normality in the middle of its carnival celebration, and only closed the attraction affected by the fall of the tree, which was cut with a chainsaw and removed by the maintenance services at around three in the afternoon.
The wind had forced during the morning to close some of the attractions as a precaution, as is always done when the wind gusts are strong in PortAventura. There is an internal protocol that preventively keeps the tallest attractions closed to the public when the wind blows intensely, as was the case yesterday morning with the Shambala, Red Force, Dragon Khan or Huracan Condor. The park did not confirm the closed attractions, but by midday visitors to the park were already being warned that it was not possible to climb everywhere yesterday due to the wind.
On the other hand, a roller coaster like the Tomahawk, of much lower height and speed, or the Furius Bacchus, worked normally despite the wind. In the case of the Tomahawk, until one of the trees fell on it. It is an attraction suitable for all audiences where many people ride with creatures.
The Mossos d’Esquadra have opened an investigation to clarify the causes of the accident. Scientific police officers inspected the attraction and the place where the tree fell. At the same time, Civil Protection is analyzing the activation of PortAventura’s self-protection plan, in force and now in the revision phase, complying with the regulations, as confirmed by sources from this body of the Generalitat. Civil Protection is also working with the park to clarify the causes.
At the close of this edition, the identities and ages of the injured had not yet been made public.
