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Inside world's most dangerous theme park that claimed multiple lives and rides electrocuted guests

Home> News> US News

Published 20:29 7 Jun 2024 GMT+1

Inside world's most dangerous theme park that claimed multiple lives and rides electrocuted guests

The deadly water park claimed the lives of six people

Brenna Cooper

Brenna Cooper

Here is a look inside the 'world's most dangerous' water park which claimed the lives of several visitors.

Action Park, located in New Jersey, was one of America's most popular theme parks during the 1980s, with thrill seekers able to enjoy a number of water slides.

However, the park would soon take on a more sinister reputation after several visitors died on the attractions before it was eventually closed down in 2016.

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The park was so infamous, that HBO even went on to create a documentary about the place titled Class Action Park in 2020, a reference to the shear amount of legal cases owners of the park faced.

Founded by Gene Mulvihill, Action Park first opened its doors back in 1978 and soon became a popular spot for its wild slides and attractions, including a wave pool which staff had to rescue around 100 people from during its first day open.

The park also featured the infamous 'Cannonball Loop' slide, which alone saw multiple nasty injuries.

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Visible from the entrance of the theme park, the slide was bright blue and featured a steep slide that had a cartoonish looking upside down loop.

The slide was reportedly so violent that park staff who were offered $100 to test the ride out would emerge with bloody mouths.

Padding was then added to slide, however, future testers would still get unexplainable cuts from the ride.

This was later revealed to have been caused by teeth from previous riders which had gotten stuck in the slide.

Sheer horror movie stuff.

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One rider would even get stuck in the slide's loop. (HBO)
One rider would even get stuck in the slide's loop. (HBO)

Riders were often reported to emerge from the slide completely disorientated, bruised and struggling to stand - most likely due to the them experiencing up to nine Gs of force (the same as a military jet pilot would experience) on the ride.

The Cannonball Loop wasn't the only dangerous ride either, with Class Action Park claiming there was around 110 injuries in just one year - including 45 head injuries at the park.

Action Park would also directly claim the lives of six people during the years it was open, with three of these deaths reportedly came from the Tidal Pool alone.

One of the most famous cases is the story of 19-year-old George Larsson Jr.

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George Larsson Jr. was one of six killed at the park. (HBO)
George Larsson Jr. was one of six killed at the park. (HBO)

Larsson was the first person to die at the park, after his sled malfunctioned on the 2,700-foot-long Alpine Track, causing him to come off the ride and hit his head on a rock.

He would later die after spending time in a coma.

Other deadly rides included the Tarzan Swing which flung people into icy water and often caused them to go into shock. One person would die of a heart attack on the ride.

The sixth person to lose their life was a 27-year-old man, who was killed after being electrocuted after getting out of his boat in the Kayak Experience.

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After closing down in 2016, the park was eventually replaced by Mountain Creek Waterpark, with updated safety measures.

Featured Image Credit: HBO

Topics: US News, TV

Brenna Cooper
Brenna Cooper

Brenna Cooper is a journalist at LADbible. She graduated from the University of Sheffield with a degree in History, followed by an NCTJ accredited masters in Journalism. She began her career as a freelance writer for Digital Spy, where she wrote about all things TV, film and showbiz. Her favourite topics to cover are music, travel and any bizarre pop culture.

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@_brencoco

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