Yesterday evening a 5-year-old boy was seriously injured after falling from a kiddie roller coaster at Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusement Park in Coney Island—the park's owner claims the boy panicked and tried to climb out of the ride while it was in operation. The unidentified child fell between the cars and one witness said his leg was split "all the way up the side." Another witness tells the Post, “There was blood all over him. They just left him there. He wasn’t moving." The boy was apparently wedged between the car and the track for 20 minutes before being extricated.
He was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he was treated for lacerations to the face and a severe cut to his leg. Some feared the boy would actually lose his leg, but the park's co-owner, Dennis Vourderis, downplayed the injury, saying it looked worse than it was. "The lap bar was securely fastened, and he just wiggled his way out from underneath it," Vourderis told ABC 7. "He was frightened...Our prayers and thoughts are with him."
The kiddie Sea Serpent roller coaster has been running for 15 years, and Vourderis says this was the first accident. He told CBS 2 the ride passed inspection two weeks ago. The amusement park is currently open; after an inspection, the city Building Department concluded there was nothing wrong with the equipment.
