ORLANDO, Fla. — Multiple people have reached out with related stories to the family of a 32-year-old man who died of blunt force injuries two weeks ago while riding the new Stardust Racers roller coaster at Universal's Epic Universe theme park, the attorney for the man's family said Tuesday.
People who've contacted the family and Ben Crump's law office since Kevin Rodriguez Zavala died Sept. 17 while riding the roller coaster include a woman who says she lost consciousness and suffered neck and spine injuries soon after the ride opened in May, Crump said during a news conference in Orlando.
The woman reached out to Zavala's family on a GoFundMe page and told them about the experience she had on the roller coaster.
“All we want is answers regarding my son’s death," Zavala's mother, Ana Zavala, said through an interpreter at Tuesday's news conference. “We want these answers so we can be able to honor him. We want these answers so we can have some peace. It is extremely difficult losing a son and we do not wish this pain on anyone.”
The dual-launch coaster reaches speeds up to 62 mph (100 kph) and debuted officially in May when Universal Orlando Resort's newest theme park opened to the public.
A spokeswoman for Universal didn't immediately respond to an inquiry on Tuesday.
Separately, a central Florida woman sued Universal last week saying she had suffered injuries while on the roller coaster. Sandi Streets said her head shook violently and slammed into her seat’s headrest when she was on the ride in April, before the park's official opening, giving her permanent injuries, according to the lawsuit.
Crump questioned what Universal did after receiving reports from the woman and others who said they were injured on the ride.
“She told them that you all need to do something about this because someone is going to be seriously injured, or worse, they're going to be killed,” Crump said. “She gave them notice, and she believed that the employees already know that there were problems with this roller coaster. And it begs the question, what did Universal do about it?”
In Zavala’s case, the medical examiner for the Orlando area ruled the cause of death as multiple blunt impact injuries and said the manner of death was an accident.
Karen Irwin, Universal Orlando Resort’s president, told workers in a note shortly after Zavala's death that internal findings showed ride systems functioned normally, equipment was intact and Universal workers followed the proper procedures. Investigators with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services also said that their initial findings align with that of the theme park.
Crump said his team will be calling for greater government oversight for large corporations such as Universal and Disney. Florida’s largest theme parks are exempt from state safety inspections, unlike smaller venues and fairs. Instead, the largest theme parks like Walt Disney World and Universal conduct their own inspections and have their own protocols, but they must report to the state any injury or death.
Since Epic Universe opened in May, there have been three reports made about rides at the theme park. In May, a 63-year-old man with a preexisting condition experienced dizziness and “an altered state of consciousness” and a 47-year-old woman with a preexisting condition had a “visual disturbance” and numbness after going on the Stardust Racers coaster, on separate days. A 32-year-old man experienced chest pains after going on the Hiccup’s Wing Gliders ride, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services.
“We believe there were warning signs that there was something wrong with the design of this ride and that they tried to blame the victims,” Crump said.
Zavala’s family has said he had a spinal disability from birth and used a wheelchair, but that didn't cause his death.
“If they believed that disabled people should not be on this roller coaster, then why would you assist him in getting on the roller coaster?” Crump said. “Now you can't justify this by trying to blame the victim.”
Crump is asking anyone who has been injured on the roller coaster to contact his office, as well anyone who witnessed what happened that day.
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