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Coaster Rider Says Wire Was Sticking In Ear

Riders Say They Were Upset At How Cedar Point Treated Them

UPDATED: 4:23 pm EDT July 14, 2004

For the people who were on the world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster Monday at Cedar Point, it was hard to figure out exactly what happened when metal shavings from a cable smacked them in the face, head, arms and legs.

The victims were treated for tiny, pin-sized cuts after getting off the Top Thrill Dragster.

NewsChannel5's Brad Harvey talked to Joel Neidenthal and four friends, who were on the coaster when it happened. They said they were upset with how Cedar Point handled the situation.

They said the amusement park didn't treat them very respectfully, or seem to take the situation very seriously.

Two of them also said they're never going to get on a roller coaster again.

“You know, at 120 mph I figured it was like bugs hitting my face. Things were hitting my arms and my face and you could just feel it hitting you,” Neidenthal said.

It was when they stopped that they noticed something had gone wrong.

Video

“We all had our arms up and Joel said, ‘Tim, what's wrong with your arms?’ and he had blood dripping, he had cuts all over his arms,” said rider Whitney James.

In fact, Harvey said tiny pieces of wire were sticking out of their skin.

Joshua Jones had a two-and-a-quarter inch long piece sticking out of his ear, NewsChannel5 reported. His girlfriend noticed it first.

“She was like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ She just panicked. And I said, ‘What, what?’ Because I didn't even feel it because going that fast, it just goes in and you don't feel anything,” Jones said.

The group said they were made to stay on the ride for several minutes before only two of them were taken to First Aid. It was their treatment after the accident that upset them most. At one point, concerned that there could still be metal under their skin, they asked about tetanus shots and were told they didn't need them, Harvey reported.

“When I began to argue with the man about it and say, ‘Well if we take him to the hospital and make sure this isn't in their body and get them a tetanus shot, will Cedar Point be paying for the bill?’ Then he gave them their tetanus shots,” James said.

The riders are talking with their parents and may consider a lawsuit against the amusement park.





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