How do you evacuate a drop tower?

[jmccalip]

What if something drastic happened to the tower and they HAD to evacuate the people. Could they do it? Lets say something(I don't know how they work exactly) happened and they were stuck at the top with an approaching thunderstorm producing tornados?

 

 

 

http://www.clickmagique.com/images/Externals/Germany/Heide-Park/Scream/Scream01.jpg

[Golfie]

Okay, yeah - this is why I'm deathly afraid to ride these things!

[mcjaco]

Jump.

[CP_RULES]

Isnt there a ladder up the side of all drop towers?

[ParkTrips]

^ I don't think so, and if there was, no way in hell they would let pargoers down that way for liability purposes.

 

I know Acrophobia has a ladder on the inside, with platforms every 20 feet or so. You can enter through the portal on the ground, as seen here:

 

 

 

... but only mechanics are allowed to go up that way.

Edited April 18, 2017 by ParkTrips

[Golfie]

^Geeze! How small is that little passage? It looks like you'd have to be a mechanic's wrench to barely fit in there.

[ScottBrown]

I think they can just manualy lower the cars back down

[pierced_b0i]

Arent they on a timer?

[Cerberus]

If the release breaks, you lower them on the motor.

 

If the motor breaks, you drop the vehicle.

 

If everything breaks at the same time, you cut around the base of the tower and push it over into a pile of awaiting mattresses.

[Calaway Park]

Unless it has magnetic brakes, and is fail safe...

[ScottBrown]

If the release breaks, you lower them on the motor.

 

If the motor breaks, you drop the vehicle.

 

If everything breaks at the same time, you cut around the base of the tower and push it over into a pile of awaiting mattresses.

 

I think Intamin drop towers need to be all the way at the top to drop, there may be a way to manualy drop the cars from above them though

[Ccron10]

My guess is use a VERY tall cherrypicker. Tornados? Very small chance of all those factors happening at the same time and if I would be one of those people stuck I would be scared out of my mind!

-Chris-

[VegasCoaster]

My guess would be a full on crane with a cage attached to it.

[ScottBrown]

I know with sky towere there are stairs down the middle and doors up the tower to get to them from the cabin Im pretty sure most drop rides have a way to lower the cars back down to the ground safley

[Freefall]

scottbrown said:

 

I think Intamin drop towers need to be all the way at the top to drop, there may be a way to manualy drop the cars from above them though

 

I've seen huracan condor (Intamin) stop 1/2 way up, wait for a couple of mins and then drop and woz working still

[Sean Menefee]

We watched Hellavator at SFKK do the same thing this June. ^

[DarkStitch626]

Jump.

Best answer ever!

 

 

 

Seriously though I believe they'd lower it with the motor if possible then call in a giant evac crane if needed by the township.

[Twister II]

I would think on the operator's control panel there is a button for the cars to drop, no matter where they would be. Or one inside the tower that mechanics would be able to reach. That just makes since to me. Noticing on Intamin drop towers there is just pretty much a small clamp that's just holding the car.

[Stitch]

I have seen Drop Zone (PKI) break down mid way up the tower. All they did was lower it back down.

[Coasterphreak]

Sounds like fun, tbh.

[CycloneMan]

It's easy to evacuate the Intamin 1st generation drop towers, but the new ones have to either be pulled down, wait, or be taken down by a cherry picker!

[kingdanny]

This is why i'm scared of these rides. Like mentioned before, a crane could get the people off.

[Satoshi]

oh no guys get stranded in drop tower! me don't wanna get caught

up in that stuff. someone gonna tell some jokes like 'just do jumpin'

for an escape!' cherry picker does get them off in that nasty

scene! oh kinda horrible! would feel sorry for its victims.....

[Canobie Fan]

Why is everyone saying cherry pickers! Have you EVER seen a 200+ foot cherry picker?! NO!

 

I think it was at Carowinds (or PGA)... But back when Dropzone was new it got stuck off the ground with riders.. And they used ropes and harnesses (As if they were rock climbing!) to get the people off it.

[Edwardo]

Which, IIRC, caused Intamin to retrofit all of those types of rides with a manual release on the cars. I believe that if those get stuck at the top, there is a manual release that has to be pulled that drops them back down.