Las Vegas Strip roller coaster passed inspection before woman’s fall
El Loco roller coaster, the Circus Circus Adventuredome ride from which a woman fell last month, passed its most recent inspection in January, records show.
“The amusement and/or transportation ride presented for operational certification was inspected, tested, evaluated, reported and found to be in substantial compliance,” according to the Jan. 4 inspection report obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
A follow-up inspection also was performed by the Clark County Department of Building Fire Prevention, which oversees all amusement rides within the county’s jurisdiction, to observe ride operations when the roller coaster was open to the public.
Rides within the county are inspected annually by an approved third-party company, according to county spokesman Erik Pappa. In addition, he said, the Department of Building Fire Prevention also may perform unannounced inspections throughout the year.
The annual inspection tests the overall condition of a ride, including lighting, wiring and the holding areas in which guests wait in line, according to the report. A ride’s safety guards, warning signs, emergency stop controls and restraints also are checked during inspections.
Since El Loco opened to the public in February 2014, records show, there have been two reported incidents involving the 72-second ride that resulted in injuries, including the woman’s fall on March 25 while the ride was moving and an April 2017 incident involving an Adventuredome employee.
Neither Clark County nor MGM Resorts International, the owner of Circus Circus, have released details regarding the woman’s condition or her injuries. But Pappa confirmed Wednesday that the woman was taken to a hospital on the day of the fall.
El Loco, which goes up to 44 mph when operating, remained closed Wednesday pending the county’s investigation. The status of the investigation was not clear Wednesday.
About two years prior to the woman’s fall, an El Loco ride operator was injured when he left his post and entered a restricted area while the roller coaster was operating, according to a summary report of the investigation into that incident.
The employee was taken to a local hospital for a “precautionary evaluation,” although his injuries were not detailed in the report.
El Loco was built in 2013 and has four cars, which each hold four passengers, according to the reports. Guests must be at least 4 feet tall to ride the roller coaster.
Warning signs in the loading area, where guests wait in line to get on the ride, instruct guests to “keep arms & hands inside” and to “remain seated,” the inspection report shows.
Contact Rio Lacanlale at rlacanlale@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @riolacanlale on Twitter.
A previous version of this story included the incorrect date of the woman’s fall.
