Six people rescued from M&D’s rollercoaster

Jun 25 2009 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

FIRE crews lifted six people to safety after they were stuck 40 feet in the air on a popular rollercoaster at Motherwell’s M&D’s Theme Park last Friday.

Six people on a work’s fun day out were stranded when the Tornado ride shuddered to a halt at 3.50pm, 10 minutes before the park’s closing time on Friday afternoon.

Firefighters removed the passengers from the carriages and brought them safely to the ground at the Strathclyde Park attraction.

None of the passengers – five women and a man – were harmed during the incident.

M&D’s said the incident was caused by a safety system being activated due to high winds, adding that the ride would remain closed while safety checks were carried out.

The thrill ride gets up to speeds of more than 80kph over 1000 metres of track and features gravity-defying 360 degree loops.

Park bosses advertise the Tornado by advising customers “don’t forget to bring new underwear”.

A spokesperson said: “We can confirm that there was an incident on the Tornado ride shortly before the theme park was due to close.

“Due to high winds the ride’s safety systems immediately slowed down the ride and put in place our pre-planned emergency procedures.

“The fire brigade was called immediately and took all six passengers down one by one.

“No passengers were injured and the ride will remain closed until all safety checks have been completed.”