The Kansas waterslide on which a 10-year-old boy was decapitated two years ago will be demolished later this year, officials announced Thursday. Melissa Willets is a writer/blogger and a mom. We are thankful for all the support and encouragement weve received, she added. The death of a 10-year-old boy on a 17-story water slide in Kansas will leave some parents wondering how safe water parks really are for their kids. According to court documents, a team of experts who inspected the ride after Caleb's death found physical evidence that indicated that other rafts had gone airborne and collided with the overhead hoops and netting before the fatality. Whats more, on July 3, 2014one week before the rides grand openingan engineering firm that was hired to perform accelerometer tests on Verrckts rafts issued a damning report that guaranteed that rafts would occasionally go airborne in a manner that could severely injure or kill the occupants. Other documents cited evidence of dozens of Schlitterbahn customers who had been injured on the ride. Caleb died Sunday, Aug. 7, 2016, while riding the Verruckt, a water slide that's billed as the world's largest, at the Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, Kan. (David Strickland via AP) "It . 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. By clicking Sign Up, you agree to our Terms and Conditions and that you have read our Privacy Policy. "We held each other and had a little emotional meltdown once we moved away from the immediate area," she says. Henry faced a charge of second-degree murder. The world's tallest water slide turned deadly on Sunday after a Kansas state lawmaker's son was killed on the attraction. I obviously recognize that the circumstances and events giving rise to these indictments are indisputably tragic, Judge Burns wrote. All rights reserved. "Caleb was a 10-year-old child, but in many ways, he was a man of God," Sprague said. There wasn't a lot of science or ride engineering involved in the testing and design, Truesdell said. "[Nathan] was screaming, 'He flew from Verrckt, he flew Verrckt,'" Caleb's mother said. Nate Schwab, 12, was at the top of the Verruckt water slide at the Schlitterbahn water park in Kansas City with his 10-year-old brother, Caleb. The park was closed down after the incident Sunday and remained closed Monday. After a boy died while riding a nearly 170-foot-tall waterslide in Kansas in 2016, state attorneys brought criminal charges against operators and associates of the water park . Judge Dismisses Charges in Boys Decapitation on 170-Foot-Tall Water Slide, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/24/us/water-slide-death-charges.html. (They were also gunning for a Guinness World Record.) The slide is also inspected daily. A company spokeswoman said in a statement that Schlitterbahn's owners embraced the judge's decision, according to the Times. "Since the day he was born, he brought abundant joy to our family and all those he came in contact with," he said. In a statement, the Kansas attorney general, Derek Schmidt, did not rule out seeking criminal charges again. LPBW's Audrey and Jeremy Roloff's Family Trip to Disneyland: See Photos, 90 Days Vanessa Gives Update on Colts Recovery from Scary Accident, SAG Awards 2023 Red Carpet: Photos of the Best and Worst Dressed Stars, The Ette Hotel Brings The White Lotus World To Life: Get Details, Farrah Abrahams Daughter Sophia Gets 6 Piercings for Her 14th Birthday, Meet Return to Amishs Sabrinas Newborn: Cutest Photos of Baby No. Esteban Castaneda told ABC News he first heard a "boom" on Schlitterbahn Waterpark's Verruckt water slide, which is promoted as the world's tallest. He said Caleb was a hugger who loved his parents, sports and Jesus. A 12-year-old boy died Sunday, Aug. 7, 2016, on the Kansas water slide that was billed as the . Jeffrey W. Henry at the Verrckt waterslide that he helped design for a Kansas water park. Authorities did not immediately identify the child who died at Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, Kansas, but state Rep. Scott Schwab and his wife released a statement saying it was their son Caleb Thomas Schwab. Police ID suspect accused of stealing bus from JFK Airport, Kiss reveal last dates of their farewell tour, ending in NYC. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. That is, until August 7, 2016, when the raft that 10-year-old Caleb Schwab was riding went airborne and hit a metal pole supporting a safety net, resulting in his decapitation and instant death. . We won't post to any of your accounts without asking first. The slide's name means "insane" in German. All Rights Caleb Schwab, 10, died on the world's tallest water slide in Kansas City in August 2016 Credit: David Strickland 7 The water slide in Kansas City was billed as the world's tallest at 168ft high 7 Fire engines pictured at the scene of the fatal accident in 2016 Credit: Reuters 7 The water park passed a private inspection in June that included Verruckt, according to a document released by a Kansas state agency. Track SoCal rain with LIVE Megadoppler 7000 HD. This is likely where Caleb had been sitting. The death of a 10-year-old at the Schlitterbahn Water Park in Kansas was even more devastating than could have been imagined with witnesses confirming that tragic child Caleb Schwab was decapitated while riding down the 168-foot-tall Verrckt slide! All Rights Reserved. Riders are told to hold ropes inside the raft. And although the Schlitterbahn Water Park is for families, this ride in particular is meant to attract so-called "thrill-seekers. On Monday, Jeffrey Henry, 62, co-owner of Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, was arrested on charges of second-degree murder, aggravated battery and aggravated child endangerment stemming from the Aug. 7, 2016, death of Caleb Schwab on Verruckt. Castaneda said two other woman were strapped into the raft, and the first position of the raft was empty. Kansas Water Slide Death Pictures, Tom Purcell Viking Net Worth, Turn External Recipients Warnings On Or Off In Gmail, When Your Ex Girlfriend Gets Hotter, Indeed Welding Jobs With Per Diem, Cheltenham Ladies' College Staff List, The Kansas City Star reports an attorney representing an affiliate of Kansas City, Kansas, park . In his ruling, the judge, Robert Burns of Wyandotte County, wrote that there was illegal evidence that should not have been presented to the grand jury and called into question videos and expert testimony presented to jurors. All rights reserved. T he death of a 10-year-old Kansas boy, who was decapitated on the world's tallest water slide over the weekend, has revived calls for change in the . He then saw a raft come through, and "immediately after the raft you see a body," he said. They're not technically really to hold you in.. I remember hearing about the accident on the news and thought that the park was going to shut down. Past close calls reported after boy dies on waterslide. Last year Caleb's family was awarded nearly $20 million in settlement payments from two companies associated with Texas-based Schlitterbahn, along with the ride's general contractor, the raft manufacturer and a consultant on the slide, reports The Kansas City Star. Ken Martin, a Richmond, Virginia-based amusement park safety consultant, questioned whether the straps were appropriate for what he called "nothing more than a roller coaster with water.". She had told him that her safety belt's Velcro came undone towards the end of her ride. My first thought was that it must have been a freak accidentwhat a horrible, horrible story, Truesdell told me. The Verrckt slide in Kansas is billed as the world's tallest water slide. Caleb Schwab, 10, died in front of his family while riding a 168ft-high water slide in Kansas at Schlitterbahn Water Park. Winter Prosapio, a spokeswoman for Schlitterbahn, said the company welcomed the decision. Are Tarek and Christina Still Business Partners After 'Flip or Flop'? Pastor Clint Sprague, the family spokesperson for the Schwab family said they're heartbroken. The boy's father, state Rep. Scott Schwab, thanked the community for the outpouring of support his family has received. The Kansas Department of Labor provided a copy of an insurance company inspector's June 7 letter saying inspections had been completed on Wednesday. She said the ride's operators sent them down the slide even though their combined weight was 393 pounds shy of the 400 weight minimum the park advertises as a requirement. ", In a statement, Schlitterbahn officials said they "are deeply and intensely saddened for the Schwab family and all who were impacted by the tragic accident.". But once I took a closer look, I started to realize how complicated this story really was, and how this could have happened to anyone who went down that slide.. The pair had hoped to ride the "World's Largest Waterslide" together. "It is with an absolutely broken heart we have to ask for prayers for the Schwab family, who suddenly and tragically lost their sweet and energetic son in an accident today," he wrote. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. A ride might be scary, but you figure that they have it figured out. The story, it turned out, was one of gross negligence, lax state regulations, and the consequences of hubris. The slide's name means "insane" in German. In early tests, rafts carrying sandbags flew off the slide, prompting engineers to tear down half the ride and reconfigure some angles. North Dakota news site MyNDNow.com reports the boy's parents were with him at the park that day. Speaking anonymously, a source close to the inquiry confirmed the boy was decapitated. But riders sometimes struck the netting or the poles, and some injuries had already occurred when, in August 2016, Caleb Schwab, 10, got into a raft with two other riders. Had either of the parents ridden the slide before? "The family and each and every one of those affected are foremost on our minds and in our hearts today. Removal of the slide had been delayed pending the investigation and trial on the criminal charges, but last year a court gave approval for it to be demolished. Police said Caleb suffered a fatal neck injury. The slide is 168-feet tall and has 264 stairs leading to the top -- taller than the Statue of Liberty. Henry and Schooley were ultimately indicted on charges of aggravated battery, aggravated endangerment of a child, interference with law enforcement, and involuntary manslaughter. The park was closed down after the incident Sunday and remained closed Monday. In Touch Weekly is part of the a360media Entertainment Group.Copyright a360media 2023. — -- A 10-year-old boy who died on a water slide in Kansas City, Kansas, suffered a fatal neck injury, officials said, as a witness recounted the "horrific scene" and the "panic" that erupted in the wake of the incident last Sunday. "I heard the noise, and I looked over immediately, and I saw his broken neck and him sliding down the slide leaving a blood trail," Melanie Gocke told CNN. Castaneda said two other women were strapped into the raft, and the first position of the raft was empty. Castaneda said that he heard booms coming from the area of the slide, and then saw a body wash down the slide directly after the raft did. The rafts sometimes lifted from the chute momentarily, and the slide was covered with netting, supported by metal poles, so riders would not fall off. Criminal indictments came in 2018. A lot of our math was based on roller coasters at first, and that didn't translate to a water slide like this. Castaneda said that he heard booms coming from the area of the slide and then saw a body wash down the slide directly after the raft did. Please note that this form cannot be used to reset your Google or Facebook password. In the aftermath . He rode the newly opened ride that day during an event at the waterpark for the families of elected officials, which included his father, former Kansas lawmaker Scott Schwab, who is now the Kansas secretary of state. He was "affectionate" and a "hugger," Sprague said, and he loved baseball, basketball and his church. The judge also sided with defense attorneys who complained that grand jurors were presented additional evidence that related to a death from a different Schlitterbahn waterpark, reports KMBC. The Velcro straps are just to make you feel safer. It's like jumping off the Empire State Building. Schlitterbahn allegedly buried or downplayed these reports. Had he begged his parents for weeks? Caleb Thomas Schwab, the son of Kansas state Rep. Scott Schwab, was killed Sunday while riding "Verruckt" at Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City. Are Janelle, Christine and Meri Suing Kody Over Money From Coyote Pass? Boy dies on 'world's biggest waterslide' at Kansas park Water slide death: 10-year-old Caleb Schwab is in heaven drinking chocolate milk, says friend An investigation has been launched into. KANSAS CITY, Kansas (WPVI) -- A witness to the tragic death of a 10-year-old boy on the world's tallest water slide in Kansas has revealed gruesome details of how the boy died. "The indictment said the Verruckt water slide raft at Kansas City's Schlitterbahn Waterpark "went airborne and collided with the overhead hoops and netting" designed to keep . ABC News talked with Esteban Castaneda, who witnessed the incident at the water park. Anyone can read what you share. ABC News talked with Esteban Castaneda, who. They were not related to the boy. The slide is 168 feet tall and has 264 stairs leading to the top - taller than the Statue of Liberty. I'd urge them not to. Caleb Thomas Schwab, the son of Kansas state Rep. Scott Schwab, was killed Sunday while riding "Verruckt" at Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City. . July 13 (UPI) --A judge has ruled a Kansas waterslide billed as the world's largest, where a boy was killed in 2016, will be demolished this summer.The 17-story Verruckt slide at Schlitterbahn . "I think we have a serious issue with the restraint system. The slide's name means "insane" in German. He would have fallen down without the raft.". 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