What was the name of the rollercoaster involved in the accident at Alton Towers in June 2015?
"employed as a technical design consultant for rollercoaster projects, such as SAW - The Ride at Thorpe Park, TH13TEEN at Alton Towers, Raptor at Gardaland, The Swarm at Thorpe Park and The Smiler at Alton Towers. On 22 January 2013, Wardley announced his retirement. In April 2013 he published an autobiography entitled ""Creating My Own Nemesis"", in print and as an audiobook. John Wardley John Richard Wardley (born 6 June 1950 in Harrow, Greater London) is a British developer for theme parks in the UK and Europe: an innovator of special effects, dark rides and roller coasters in the themed"
"opening this summer"". The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) initiated a criminal investigation that focused on the actions of two employees – a ride engineer and a ride operator – who may have failed to follow basic safety protocols leading up to the accident. In the incident's aftermath, Alton Towers and its owner Merlin Entertainments observed a drop in revenue and visitor numbers, which contributed to the decision to make up to 190 job redundancies at the theme park. Six rides were closed during the 2016 season as a result of the crash. Varney released a public statement stating: The"
"site of the former Beastie roller coaster was being cleared, with concrete foundations and construction fences being placed on the site. On 17 January 2015, track and supports arrived on site at the park. The ride was officially confirmed on Alton Towers' website on 14 February 2015 and opened on the first day of the season, 21 March 2015. The ride begins with a right-hand turn out of the station, where the train then climbs the 6.5 metre tall lift hill. The train then drops approximately 3 metres to the right, with a downwards left helix following. After exiting the"
"The Smiler The Smiler is a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, United Kingdom. Manufactured by Gerstlauer, it features 14 inversions and holds the world record for most inversions on a roller coaster. The Smiler has suffered a series of setbacks and ride incidents, including a malfunction at a press preview event which delayed the official opening date by two months, and in 2015, a major collision that left five riders seriously injured. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive was initiated, and the ride was closed for the remainder of that season. The ride eventually"
"on boxes of Krave cereal. The Smiler The Smiler is a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, United Kingdom. Manufactured by Gerstlauer, it features 14 inversions and holds the world record for most inversions on a roller coaster. The Smiler has suffered a series of setbacks and ride incidents, including a malfunction at a press preview event which delayed the official opening date by two months, and in 2015, a major collision that left five riders seriously injured. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive was initiated, and the ride was closed for the remainder of"
"24 March 2016. It features an track, reaches a top speed of , and debuted a dedicated virtual reality experience. Alton Towers conceived the concept of a flying roller coaster in 1990, twelve years before Air eventually opened. Following the opening of Nemesis in 1994, a flying coaster was planned by the park to open in 1998, but was delayed due to technological limitations. During its development, Alton Towers marketed the ride as Secret Weapon 5 (abbreviated to SW5), following the naming pattern established for previous major park developments. The ride was developed in part by ride designer John Wardley,"
"half failed to make it over the hill, rolled back and crashed into the rear half which had remained stuck in the tunnel. Six people were taken to hospital and 23 others were treated for cuts and bruises. Following the incident the Runaway Mine Train was closed for the rest of the season. The train was only returned to full length operation in June the following year. Alton Towers is set in a Conservation Area, which puts a restriction on the height of any ride or building development in the park. It has been agreed with the local council that"
"of the ride's scenes along with associated sound effects and music. However, the ride was closed for refurbishment in June 2005 to make way for . Sega's sponsorship was set to end in 2013 as part of the three-year deal. At the end of 2013, the sponsorship was renewed, and continued until 2016. On 2 June 2015, the ride was temporarily closed after an accident on The Smiler at Alton Towers. Sonic Spinball reopened on 15 June 2015. The ride returned to the Spinball Whizzer theme for the 2016 season. Spinball Whizzer Spinball Whizzer is a spinning roller coaster located"
"Thirteen is among the most popular rides in the park, with wait time frequently in excess of an hour. Thirteen (roller coaster) Thirteen (officially stylised as TH13TEEN) is a steel roller coaster at Alton Towers in England. The ride was constructed by Intamin and opened on 20 March 2010. It is the world's first vertical freefall drop roller coaster, on which the track and train freefall approximately five metres in darkness. The ride replaced and is built on the former site of the Corkscrew, which resided at Alton Towers for 28 years between 1980 and 2008. Alton Towers first revealed"
"later for eight seat rafts to increase passenger throughput. The ride would close for safety on May the 17th, 2017 when it was announced that the Swiss company Intamin were the makers of the similar ride, Splash Canyon, involved in an incident where an eleven year-old child fell from the raft into the waters and died. On , Alton Towers announced that the ride would operate seasonally for 2018, operating only from to . The inspiration for this ride comes from the real Congo River rapids. They lie on the outskirts of Brazzaville in the Republic of the Congo, where"
"be made. Alton Towers Operations and Developments Director Mark Kerrigan revealed that the ride has yet to be officially completed by the park.In November 2015, Alton Towers announced that six of its attractions would not reopen the following season, including Nemesis Sub-Terra. While two of the attractions have since reopened and three of them either removed or confirmed not to reopen, it has not been confirmed if Nemesis Sub-Terra will return. In July 2018, construction of a yellow gazebo began immediately outside of the ride entrance. The park later confirmed that the work was in preparation for a previously-confirmed scare"
"Nemesis: Sub-Terra Nemesis Sub-Terra is a drop tower dark ride located at Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire, United Kingdom. The ride opened to the public on 24 March 2012 and ceased operation in August 2015, following an accident that occurred on The Smiler that injured several riders. The ride is listed on the park's website as unavailable, and its future is unknown. Its theme focuses on the discovery of a nest of eggs in a network of underground caves, which is loosely adapted from the concept of the park's 1994 inverted roller coaster, Nemesis. As the entrance is approached,"
"Thirteen (roller coaster) Thirteen (officially stylised as TH13TEEN) is a steel roller coaster at Alton Towers in England. The ride was constructed by Intamin and opened on 20 March 2010. It is the world's first vertical freefall drop roller coaster, on which the track and train freefall approximately five metres in darkness. The ride replaced and is built on the former site of the Corkscrew, which resided at Alton Towers for 28 years between 1980 and 2008. Alton Towers first revealed their plans for the ride in October 2008 when it was announced that Corkscrew would be removed. Planning permission"
"girl's leg was trapped between a barrier and a splashback on the ride's structure, causing a serious injury. In August 2015, three people were injured when the White Water Log Flume slipped on its track, and later the same month a 58-year-old woman and three teenagers were forced to walk down from the top of the ride after it stuck at the highest point. In March 2016, eight people had to be rescued from the Tornado roller coaster after it became stuck 20 ft (6.09m) above the ground at the theme park. On 26 June 2016, the roller coaster Tsunami"
"site. ""The Independent"" newspaper published a story 6 June 2015 recalling the accident, prompted by an accident at Alton Towers in which sixteen people were injured, four seriously. Regarding the 1972 accident, Carolyn Adamczyk, a passenger on the ride during the accident, said: ""As soon as we started shooting backwards everything went into slow motion... I turned around and saw the brake man desperately trying to put the brake on but it wasn’t working. Most of the carriages didn’t go around the bend, one detached and went off the side through a wooden hoarding. People were groaning and hanging over"
"going into the brakes and station. The coaster became very rough toward the end of its life, and contributed to the decision to dismantle it in 2008. One of the coaster's cars was put up for sale on eBay. The car was sold on 15 December 2008 for £7,200, and these funds went to good causes. Alton Towers retained the famous corkscrew inversions which were refurbished and placed as an artwork feature in the entrance plaza. The opening title sequence used by ""The ITV Chart Show"" between January 1989 and November 1991 was created by digitally rotoscoping footage of the"
"guests to ""prepare for a new flight"" and to ""watch this space"". On 12 January 2016, Alton Towers announced that Air would be re-themed as Galactica for the 2016 season and would include on-ride virtual reality headsets simulating a ride through the cosmos. The announcement was made at an event held at the Science Museum. Each seat on the roller coaster was initially fitted with a Samsung Gear VR headset and pouch. The virtual reality experience is optional, as guests can choose to ride without using the headsets. A promotional website was also released explaining more information about the ride"
"Oblivion (roller coaster) Oblivion is a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers in England. The ride was marketed as 'the world's first vertical drop roller coaster' and opened to the public on 14 March 1998, amidst a large publicity campaign. It was the second in a long line of 'Secret Weapon' (SW4) rollercoasters to have opened at Alton Towers. The ride has a height restriction of . With a maximum speed of 68 mph, it is the third fastest roller coaster in the UK, behind Stealth at Thorpe Park and the Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. During 1997,"
"it assumed the name ""Beastie"" after a larger roller coaster in the area, called The Beast. It stayed here for several years, up to the 1998 season when it was moved to the Adventure Land section of the park. The ride was very compact and contained several head chopper effects. In 2009, it became the Alton Towers' oldest operating roller-coaster following the closure of the Corkscrew the previous year. In early 2011, it was revealed that Beastie would not be operating again. It was removed from the park just before the 2013 season. In 2015, Octonauts Rollercoaster Adventure, a Zamperla"
"not open on the originally scheduled date due to ""unforeseen teething problems."" The ride's delayed opening initially caused controversy as many had booked advance tickets and stays at the Alton Towers Hotel in order to be among the first to ride the coaster. However, Alton Towers later announced it would allow those who had made advanced bookings to change their tickets and hotel reservations free of charge. The Smiler eventually opened on 31 May 2013. The ride has been known for a number of significant structural and technical issues since its launch. The most serious incident occurred on 2 June"
"none were injured in the incident. In June 2013, eight riders were evacuated after another incident and were forced to use an emergency staircase to exit. Additional incidents occurred in both June and July 2014. In the June 2014 incident, the coaster was stuck on the top of the lift hill and riders were forced to evacuate using the emergency stair. In the July 2014 incident, the coaster was stuck near the end of the ride. Neither case resulted in any injuries. Typhoon (Bobbejaanland) Typhoon is a steel roller coaster at the Bobbejaanland amusement park in Lichtaart, Belgium. Typhoon is"
"Ripsaw (Alton Towers) Ripsaw was a Top Spin ride at Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire, England. It opened in 1997 and closed at the end of 2015. The ride opened on March 15th 1997 alongside The Blade (originally the pirate ship), which replaced Thunder Looper - a Schwartzkopf Shuttle Loop. The ride was manufactured by HUSS, a German amusement ride manufacturer. It was closed on November 8th 2015 after the 2015 season had ended, and was removed from the park during the closed season. It was replaced by Forbidden Sweep, a small carnival game, for the 2016 season. Riders"
"maze called Project 42 which would be inside of the disused Nemesis: Sub-Terra building and queue line. The maze was themed around an antidote for a virus having caused mutations in human cells, causing the antidote’s test subjects to develop animalistic qualities. Nemesis: Sub-Terra Nemesis Sub-Terra is a drop tower dark ride located at Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire, United Kingdom. The ride opened to the public on 24 March 2012 and ceased operation in August 2015, following an accident that occurred on The Smiler that injured several riders. The ride is listed on the park's website as unavailable,"
"used to be an indoor roller coaster, but was closed to the public after an incident in 2005. There are also numerous family attractions such as bumper boats, a family coaster, a Ferris wheel and a central pavilion with many funfair-style games. On 25 November 2005, two girls were critically injured after being thrown from the subsequently discontinued ""Alpha 8"" Roller Coaster and falling 3 metres. The cause of the incident is thought to be a faulty safety restraint. With effect of 26 November 2011, Escape Theme Park has ceased operations. NTUC Club, the parent company of Escape Theme Park"
"the public on 16 March 2002. On opening, Alton Towers entered into a five-year sponsorship agreement for the ride with Cadbury Heroes. In June 2015, the park submitted a planning application to make modifications to the station building and retail space. This proposed adding a new photo opportunity into the queue, enclosing the station building with new walls, and constructing additional theming elements around the ride area. This was in addition to an earlier planning application to convert the existing ride shop into a restaurant. In October 2015, the first promotional material was posted on the Alton Towers website, advising"
"Whizzer"", which was to open at Alton Towers for the 2004 season. Its custom layout was created by John Wardley to fit in with the terrain and area at the park. The steel spinning roller coaster ride opened in 2004. It was manufactured by Maurer Söhne. In early 2015, large portions of the ride's track were dismantled in order to be filled with sand. This was to reduce noise for both park guests and nearby residents. Other sections, including its lift hills were altered to reduce noise after complaints from guests riding the ""Tiny Truckers"" attraction. In June 2015, following"
"of the park. The new Turbulence coaster, which replaced the Hurricane, opened on May 22, 2015. A new thrill ride called Mystery Mansion replaced the Ghost House and the drop N' Twist in 2018. Two unrelated deaths occurred within a week of each other in the summer of 2005. The first victim was a ride operator for the ""Paul Bunyon"" (Ladybug Coaster). The worker was struck by the coaster car; he died the next morning due to internal injuries. The second incident involved a 45-year-old woman on a ride called the ""Top Scan"" (which replaced the ""Looping Star""). She was"
"Nemesis (roller coaster) Nemesis is an inverted roller coaster located at the Alton Towers theme park in England. The ride's concept and layout was devised by designer John Wardley. It was manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) and opened in March 1994. It is located in the Forbidden Valley area of the park, adjacent to Galactica (previously ""Air""), a Bolliger & Mabillard flying roller coaster, and The Blade, a HUSS Park Attractions pirate ship ride. The ride stands tall and features a top speed of . The four-inversion roller coaster was one of the first Bolliger & Mabillard rides to"
"the producer of many attractions at Alton Towers and other former Tussauds Group theme parks. Construction of Air began in mid-2001. Later that year, Alton Towers initially advertised the new rollercoaster as a ""next generation Aerial Inversion Ride""; subsequently revealing the name Air. In early 2002, testing of Air began with special crash test dummies. At the time of opening, Air tied with Oblivion as the most expensive ride at Alton Towers, at a cost of £12 million. A £4.5 million marketing campaign for the ride included commercials based around the ride's slogan, ""assume the position"". Air officially opened to"
"not returned to its full length until the end of June 2007, because some of the carriages were still undergoing refurbishment at MACK Rides. Runaway Mine Train (Alton Towers) The Runaway Mine Train is a powered steel roller coaster made by MACK Rides of Germany. The ride is located in the Katanga Canyon area of Alton Towers in Staffordshire, England. The train normally makes two circuits for each ride, although on quiet days it has been known to run for three or more circuits. The ride runs alongside the Congo River Rapids, with which it shares a tunnel section. Passengers"
"that was the ""first time we'd ever seen the actual failure of the machinery"". An investigation revealed that there was a design flaw in the wheel assembly dealing with a bolted joint, and that there was ""really nothing that Movie World could have done to prevent it. S&S Worldwide redesigned the flawed components, and tested the ride, before it reopened to the public on 16 December 2015. Green Lantern Coaster Green Lantern Coaster is a steel roller coaster at Warner Bros. Movie World on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The ride is themed after DC Comics' Green Lantern and is"
"(HSE) concluded the crash was foreseeable, stating that ""Merlin failed to put in place systems that allowed their engineers to work safely on the ride while it was running"". During the subsequent court case, Merlin retracted their statement and pleaded guilty to a breach of health and safety law. The company was fined £5Million, with the court citing a ""catalogue of errors"" with Merlin's operating procedure and training. In June 2017, Alton Towers estate owner Nick Leslau incorrectly repeated that the crash was due to ""a human error"", but added that ""Merlin has paid a massive price, but the performance"
"and its new storyline. In late February 2016, the park announced that the official opening date would be 24 March 2016. Since the start of the 2018 season, the virtual reality headsets have been reduced to the back three rows of each train only, with guests choosing whether to use the VR or not when they enter the station. At the time of opening, Galactica was the tallest ride at Alton Towers, standing tall. The ride reaches a top speed of . Riders can experience a g-force of up to 3.5g whilst on the ride. One cycle of the ride"