Johnny Upsidedown Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 http://www.dailyherald.com/story.asp?id=217432 Authorities say she had a history of heart trouble BY SARA FAIWELL Daily Herald Staff Writer Posted Wednesday, August 16, 2006 A 10-year-old Arlington Heights girl who had a heart condition died Wednesday after getting off a ride at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee. Around 6:18 p.m., the girl collapsed in the Yukon Territory section of the park. She was visiting the theme park with her 63-year-old grandmother and cousins. Witnesses said she had just exited from a ride in the Camp Cartoon Network area of the park, possibly the Spacely's Sprocket Rockets roller coaster. She was running to rejoin family members when she suddenly collapsed. It was later learned that the girl had a history of heart trouble. Her name is not being released, pending the notification of family members. Gurnee fire department paramedics and police responded to the scene. They found the girl in full cardiac arrest, and she was later transported to Condell Medical Center in Libertyville. Doctors there pronounced her dead about 7:15 p.m., according to police. "It's been tough for us, and our thoughts and prayers are certainly with the family," said park spokesman Jim Taylor. Lake County Coroner Richard Keller said the girl's autopsy will be Thursday. "She did have a known history of heart and medical problems, so likely her death was a natural death," he said. Police said there is no foul play suspected, and any further investigations will be handled by the county coroner's office. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrillrider15 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Wow. This is sad. I wonder why and what in her heart (if it was the cause) made her collapse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screamomatic Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 I think this is sad, could you imagine losing a little girl like that? Why aren't people reading the signs? Do they need to go back school or something? I'd also like to know what a 'heart condition' is exactly and what happens to the heart and why... is there an article or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kennywood!007 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 This is the sadest coaster accident I have read. Man, she was only 10 Its so weird that she just went out like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
okinawaboy11 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 What makes it so sad is that she was running to her friends and family. Just imagine like your friend running to you or someone close and then just collapsing dead.... It also makes me wanna scream, listen to those little signs that say don't ride if you have this this or this. Still, very tradgic and sad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blazen_AZN Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 I think this is sad, could you imagine losing a little girl like that? Why aren't people reading the signs? Do they need to go back school or something? It doesn't sond to me like the coaster had anything to do with it. I could be wrong though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GURZU Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 OMG! This situation must be terrible ... it looks like a romantic filmc, that one goes out traversing towards other one, alone that the girl dies... This is Terrible! Rest in Peace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cressie2 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 this mint make me sound like the bad guy but think about it theirs sighns warning people who can ride and who cant.She didnt read the sighns,she took the risk.I have epilepsy and i make sure im going on a ridewithout strobe lights Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arrowfanman Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Nowhere did it say that the ride was a catylist for her heart-problem. So we dont have to get all defensive now! -Jahan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obeygiant Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Wow, this is sad...What type of coaster was it? It sounds like it was in a kiddie area, so was it a kiddie coaster? How many times is this going to happen before people start to learn... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Johnson Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 The coaster is a Kiddie Vekoma Skater. It is about as tame as a coaster can get. Spacely's Sprocket Rockets roller coaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cressie2 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 how did she die after going on tht Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexTitan01 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 the ride wasnt the problem, it was just that point and time that her heart went out. It probably was more affected by her running to catch up w/ her family than riding that little thing. The whole incident was totally random, the ride IMO had nothing to do with her demise. Of course, half of americas gonna believe the opposite... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Upsidedown Posted August 17, 2006 Author Share Posted August 17, 2006 I would figure, the excitment of riding the roller coaster and probably the excitment of being at an amusement park are the contributing factors. I would also figure that a heart condition ---- would be affected by the various chemicals the body releases as you enjoy riding rides or other things. Which would contribute to well a heart attack. A flood of indorphins or even adrenaline can cause the heart to race which inturn if she had a heart condition would complicat things. So figure the excitment of the ride running to see grand ma, a warm summer day, maybe alittle dehydration and a pump of adrenaline. Even though the coaster is small. Think about when you were 10 years old. Just going an a ferris wheel or a carosel is exciting to some. Just a few rumblings of my opinion. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waterviper Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Now had she had the heart attack on the coaster itself then most likely the coaster would be to blame even though it is the tamest coaster on the planet! But Johnny Upsidedown pretty much has it all right. I believe all that factored into her heart attack. But also she could just as well of been at a city park running around at a playground and it of happened aswell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golfie Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 I think this is sad, could you imagine losing a little girl like that? Why aren't people reading the signs? Do they need to go back school or something? I'd also like to know what a 'heart condition' is exactly and what happens to the heart and why... is there an article or something? Usually, people don't know about heart conditions until something happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnome Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Wow, this is sad...What type of coaster was it? It sounds like it was in a kiddie area, so was it a kiddie coaster? How many times is this going to happen before people start to learn... I highly doubt the coaster had anything to do with her death, except raise her adrenaline a little. Or maybe it was the running to her friends and family that did her in? Either way, I'm pretty sure this was going to happen sooner or later by the sounds of it, unfortunately it happened at a very inconvenient time for the family where everyone is suppose to be having fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterjunkie91350 Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Hey i feel for her family when god when are people going to stop taking risks with their life and pay attention to the warnings they put up on those rides. my mom used to ride the rides at sfmm now she cant she has high blood pressure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete4winds Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 Usually, people don't know about heart conditions until something happens. Obviously you didn't see in the article where it said the girl had a history of heart trouble. People with a "history" of any medical condition do indeed know about it. That's how a history is established. An example from my own family. My mother was a big coaster fan until she had neck surgery a few years back. She has titanium pins in her neck now, and although her neck is structurally stronger than before her surgery (even stronger than in its natural state), she really doesn't ride much anymore, if at all. Why? Because she pays enough attention to her own health to know that there's the chance, however slight, that something could go wrong. The point? She knows the condition exists, just like in this case. This is a truly sad situation, but in most of the other cases this year, those conditions were unknown. Unfortunately in this case, it seems (at least according to the article) that the condition was known and ignored. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCW FREAK Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 That is soo sad keep us posted if you get any sort of article on the Autopsy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golfie Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 Usually, people don't know about heart conditions until something happens. Obviously you didn't see in the article where it said the girl had a history of heart trouble. People with a "history" of any medical condition do indeed know about it. That's how a history is established. An example from my own family. My mother was a big coaster fan until she had neck surgery a few years back. She has titanium pins in her neck now, and although her neck is structurally stronger than before her surgery (even stronger than in its natural state), she really doesn't ride much anymore, if at all. Why? Because she pays enough attention to her own health to know that there's the chance, however slight, that something could go wrong. The point? She knows the condition exists, just like in this case. This is a truly sad situation, but in most of the other cases this year, those conditions were unknown. Unfortunately in this case, it seems (at least according to the article) that the condition was known and ignored. I tend to skim sometimes... but in most cases, that's what the problem is. I don't feel as sorry for the family, then. Andrew "The signs are there for a reason!" C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calcajun Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 I didn't read through all pages but you know, if she had a heart condition, the running back to her family part could have even done it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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