Kansas lawmaker's son killed on world's largest water slide

It is difficult to imagine many things more awful than this. I hope I never experience a scene like this one.

Boy dies on world’s tallest water slide

 

And that's a sanitized version of the story.

 

Believe me. You don't want the unsanitized version. Those two people in the raft with him will have that for the rest of their lives.

 

What's the semi sanitized version? That Post story told nothing.

 

I saw a headline about decapitation. But I wasn't about to click that.

 

The sanitization of the story bothers me. People have a right to know that there is - or was - a waterslide that was dangerous enough a contraption to decapitate a 10-year-old child.

 

I'm not sure that it was known yet, when that initial story was written. I debated whether to post this story, because it verges on misery porn. But I ultimately came down where you come down. I have a 3-year-old and a 7-year-old. They love water slides. As a parent, I want to know that this can happen, and I want to know why.

 

There's no way to bring this up without sounding like an asshole, and it is a microscopic complaint next to the tragedy that happened, but nevertheless:

Why were a bunch of politicians and their families letting themselves get comped for admission and lunch on "Elected Officials Day" at the water park? Does nobody pretend to do ethics anymore?

 

Some things in this world just can't be sanitized.

 

Velcro-type straps on the harnesses there? Holy shit. That stuff wears thin. Why would they not have sturdy buckle harnesses? (For the record, the straps were not Velcro brand.)

Negligent as hell. Multiple reports of similar harness problems previously.

Tough questions arise about design, safety of Schlitterbahn’s Verrückt

 

I was at the royals game when it happened and my Twitter feed blew up in the sixth inning with reports about this.

The unspoken was that the boy had been decapitatwd. I'm horrified just reading this.

We drove by it hours later not even knowing those awful details and my two kids - who had wanted to ride the damn water slide for two years - now had no desire to ever ride it.

The park is open today. Given wear happened, I can't imagine ever taking a child there or ever spending a dollar there.

 

Kansas has some of the weakest regulation of rides in the United States. State law allows officials to conduct spot safety inspections, but employees in that department have been slashed by a third in recent years.

A Schlitterbahn employee told FOX 4 she had never saw a single state inspection in the multiple years she has worked there. She added that the only inspection the park ever carried out was 'people riding down slides one time - 'oh, it's okay,'' she said she was told.



Read more: Lawmaker demands better regulation of water park rides