PeoplemoverMatt Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Did the train derail and then hit a tree, or did it derail because it hit a tree? So far I've been unable to tell. If a tree somehow slumped against the track, that would be a huge problem for the guide wheels and the chassis. But if the chassis broke, the train wouldn't have to wander very far in order to hit a tree. So far it's all sounding like it derailed because of a fallen/slumped tree but can't really get anything definitive. Don't expect the news coverage to provide much. The "COASTERS ARE ALL DEATH TRAPS!!!" machine is on its way if it hasn't already begun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laqueefa Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Hopefully this is not the end of Ninja, if the park was thinking about removing it, this may be the icing on the cake. I certainly hope its not the end for this ride. I love Ninja and the layout as it swings me throughout the tree line. I can only imagine the line of ambulance chasing lawyers who want a piece of whatever suit is coming down the pipeline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrillseeker4552 Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I'm going to be honest--I saw this happening sooner or later. I love Ninja, but the ride rattled so much, it made me question how tightly the train was positioned on the track. I felt like all the bolts were going to come lose and the ride would derail at some point. Looks like it did. Good news is, no one looks hurt, but I wouldn't be surprised if this is the end of Ninja. I'm going to respond to this. You saw this happening.... how? It appears a tree branch fell on the track which caused this... NOT it falling apart because of loose rattling bolts like you say. What you posted almost sounds like something the typical GP would say. Come on... seriously? The trains have been running the way they were designed to. The ride is "seasoned" so it's going to sound like that. Don't you think if it was going to derail as you claim it would have already? And seriously this could happen to any coaster that has a tree branch fall on it. You did not see this coming, a tree branch (apparently) caused this, it's a random event. Okay, I see your point. I posted this before it was confirmed that a tree fell on the track, so I guess it's just a coincidence that the one ride in the park that felt rattly and loose derailed, regardless of the cause. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Zo Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Don't know what stream y'all have been watching, but I'm watching http://ktla.com/2014/07/07/4-injured-on-ninja-roller-coaster-at-magic-mountain-fire-department/ and it looks like it's still going. Heh, same scenario with this one -- a raw audio feed. "7's gotta be running out of fuel sooner or later..." --channel 5 KTLA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bostonlva Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 They obviously should have done that first... not after more than half of the train had already been evacuated. I get the feeling you're forgetting what park we're dealing with... You realize its the firemen who are doing this and NOT six flags? So I do not get what you are saying Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bostonlva Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mightypotato Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 From that Reddit thread: POV! Tree: 1 - Coaster: 0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GigaG Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Did the train derail and then hit a tree, or did it derail because it hit a tree? So far I've been unable to tell. If a tree somehow slumped against the track, that would be a huge problem for the guide wheels and the chassis. But if the chassis broke, the train wouldn't have to wander very far in order to hit a tree. So far it's all sounding like it derailed because of a fallen/slumped tree but can't really get anything definitive. Don't expect the news coverage to provide much. The "COASTERS ARE ALL DEATH TRAPS!!!" machine is on its way if it hasn't already begun. The news should reassure people that coasters are safe. The accident itself is shocking enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonnyRCT3 Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcroques Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Did the train derail and then hit a tree, or did it derail because it hit a tree? So far I've been unable to tell. If a tree somehow slumped against the track, that would be a huge problem for the guide wheels and the chassis. But if the chassis broke, the train wouldn't have to wander very far in order to hit a tree. So far it's all sounding like it derailed because of a fallen/slumped tree but can't really get anything definitive. Don't expect the news coverage to provide much. The "COASTERS ARE ALL DEATH TRAPS!!!" machine is on its way if it hasn't already begun. The news should reassure people that coasters are safe. The accident itself is shocking enough. That's not how it is in LA news... sensationalism is key! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tmcdllr Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I'm going to be honest--I saw this happening sooner or later. I love Ninja, but the ride rattled so much, it made me question how tightly the train was positioned on the track. I felt like all the bolts were going to come lose and the ride would derail at some point. Looks like it did. Good news is, no one looks hurt, but I wouldn't be surprised if this is the end of Ninja. I'm going to respond to this. You saw this happening.... how? It appears a tree branch fell on the track which caused this... NOT it falling apart because of loose rattling bolts like you say. What you posted almost sounds like something the typical GP would say. Come on... seriously? The trains have been running the way they were designed to. The ride is "seasoned" so it's going to sound like that. Don't you think if it was going to derail as you claim it would have already? And seriously this could happen to any coaster that has a tree branch fall on it. You did not see this coming, a tree branch (apparently) caused this, it's a random event. Okay, I see your point. I posted this before it was confirmed that a tree fell on the track, so I guess it's just a coincidence that the one ride in the park that felt rattly and loose derailed, regardless of the cause. There are coasters all over the world that rattle and feel loose... do they derail? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Zo Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 The NBC stream just showed one of the remaining riders from car 2 row 1 being evacuated safely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mightypotato Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Picture courtesy of KCAL/Park Journey on Facebook: Well..there's your problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoulderDash Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 SFMM's website. Ninja is temporarily closed. Well that didn't take long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBH Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Did the train derail and then hit a tree, or did it derail because it hit a tree? So far I've been unable to tell. If a tree somehow slumped against the track, that would be a huge problem for the guide wheels and the chassis. But if the chassis broke, the train wouldn't have to wander very far in order to hit a tree. So far it's all sounding like it derailed because of a fallen/slumped tree but can't really get anything definitive. Don't expect the news coverage to provide much. The "COASTERS ARE ALL DEATH TRAPS!!!" machine is on its way if it hasn't already begun. The news should reassure people that coasters are safe. The accident itself is shocking enough. I feel like the media always blow things like this out of proportion when instead they should be ensuring the public that occurrences like this are extremely rare and that all amusement rides certified to operate are completely and totally safe. Unfortunately that doesn't happen. Seems like they're taking a while to investigate the front car. I've only been watching for a couple of minutes, have they successfully evacuated everyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcdude Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Wow, I'm surprised this didn't turn out worse than it did. From the pictures, it sounds like the train ran head-on into a fallen tree and derailed. Terrible for all the people involved, especially those with any injuries resulting from this accident, but fortunately nobody was killed or permanently injured (at least as far as we know now). I really hope this isn't the end of the ride, but given the ride's age and lack of popularity it wouldn't surprise me if it is retired soon. It will probably depend how severe the damage is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirkFunk Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Did the train derail and then hit a tree, or did it derail because it hit a tree? So far I've been unable to tell. If a tree somehow slumped against the track, that would be a huge problem for the guide wheels and the chassis. But if the chassis broke, the train wouldn't have to wander very far in order to hit a tree. So far it's all sounding like it derailed because of a fallen/slumped tree but can't really get anything definitive. Don't expect the news coverage to provide much. The "COASTERS ARE ALL DEATH TRAPS!!!" machine is on its way if it hasn't already begun. The news should reassure people that coasters are safe. The accident itself is shocking enough. Maybe then theme parks should, I dunno, take care of their stuff and not let trees fall over on operating rides. I'm honestly at a complete loss for trees falling down on an average day in any park in the country. Tree branches, I can think of one example. A whole tree? Trees don't just fall over when the weather is nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djboss302 Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Did the train derail and then hit a tree, or did it derail because it hit a tree? So far I've been unable to tell. If a tree somehow slumped against the track, that would be a huge problem for the guide wheels and the chassis. But if the chassis broke, the train wouldn't have to wander very far in order to hit a tree. So far it's all sounding like it derailed because of a fallen/slumped tree but can't really get anything definitive. Don't expect the news coverage to provide much. The "COASTERS ARE ALL DEATH TRAPS!!!" machine is on its way if it hasn't already begun. The news should reassure people that coasters are safe. The accident itself is shocking enough. Maybe then theme parks should, I dunno, take care of their stuff and not let trees fall over on operating rides. I'm honestly at a complete loss for trees falling down on an average day in any park in the country. Tree branches, I can think of one example. A whole tree? Trees don't just fall over when the weather is nice. Well, unless there's an earthquake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcdude Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 ^^There was a small earthquake in Southern California yesterday. It's possible that caused the tree to shift and become unstable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tmcdllr Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 (edited) 1. Just because a tree branch fell on Ninja why do you think it would be the end of the ride? This could happen to any coaster that has trees around it and if it did does that then mean it's the end of that ride? Why would people say this? 2. So is the park now closed or just the back half? 3. ^Earthquake yesterday... hmm... could have something to do with it. Edited July 8, 2014 by Tmcdllr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBH Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 And to answer my own question, it looks like they've evacuated someone from car 2, row 2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Zo Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Now only Car 1 is left, with four riders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBH Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Now only Car 1 is left, with four riders. This'll be interesting to watch; I'd imagine they'd have to take extreme caution in moving the derailed car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster19 Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 1. Just because a tree branch fell on Ninja why do you think it would be the end of the ride? This could happen to any coaster that has trees around it and if it did does that then mean it's the end of that ride? Why would people say this? 2. So is the park now closed or just the back half? 3. ^Earthquake yesterday... hmm... could have something to do with it. For what I know the park is still open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirkFunk Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 ^^There was a small earthquake in Southern California yesterday. It's possible that caused the tree to shift and become unstable. If a small earthquake 120 miles away causes trees to fall down a day later, its a miracle then that it never happened before. They should close the whole "mountain" area and start checking roots then.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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