Technician says Florida thrill ride operator ignored his safety concerns before teen's fatal fall
A maintenance technician alleged on Wednesday that he raised safety issues with the operators of a central Florida amusement ride before a 14-year-old boy fell to his death, but his concerns were never addressed.
Austin Campbell-Alexander said in the state whistleblower lawsuit that the Orlando Free Fall ride at Icon Park had sensors which were modified to accommodate people whose height or weight were outside safety limits. He also alleged that overheated cylinders prevented seats from securing properly and that the drop ride's metal structure had cracks in its joints. Campbell-Alexander also said he and his colleagues weren't given any training on ride maintenance or patron safety.
'He brought these concerns to his manager and the owner of the ride, and basically they didn't do what they should have done,' Greg Schmitz, one of his attorneys, said in a phone interview.
A spokeswoman for the ride operators didn't immediately respond to an emailed inquiry.
Tyre Sampson fell 70 feet (21 meters) to his death on March 24, 2022. A football standout who stood 6 foot, 2 inches tall (1.9 meters) and weighed 380 pounds (172 kilograms), he was visiting Orlando on spring break from the St. Louis area.
Sampson went with friends to the amusement park on International Drive in the heart of the region's tourism district, and they rode the Orlando Free Fall, which placed 30 riders in seats attached to a tower. Each passenger was secured with a shoulder harness before the ride lifted them up the tower and then dropped them 430 feet (131 meters).
Because of Sampson's size, the harness didn't lock properly and he was ejected from his seat when the ride braked, authorities said.
Campbell-Alexander wasn't present during the accident, but he has suffered depression and anxiety since then, Schmitz said.
He said that after Sampson's death, he was asked to backfill blank maintenance logs showing that tasks had been performed in the weeks before the accident. Campbell-Alexander refused and was put on paid administrative leave for a year and not permitted to return to the property, the lawsuit said.
After Sampson's family reached a settlement with the ride's operators, Campbell-Alexander was fired. His attorneys said it was retaliation for the safety concerns he had flagged. Sampson's family also won a $310 million verdict against the attraction's Austrian builder last year.
The lawsuit filed in state court in Orlando said Campbell-Alexander is seeking more than $50,000. Schmitz said it should include back pay, compensatory damages and punitive damages.
'It was just very traumatic from his perspective, working there,' Schmitz said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
an hour ago
- Los Angeles Times
A school shooting in the Austrian city of Graz leaves at least 9 people and suspected gunman dead
GRAZ, Austria — A former student opened fire at a school in Austria's second-biggest city on Tuesday, killing nine people and wounding at least 12 others before taking his own life, authorities said. There was no immediate information on the motive of the 21-year-old man, who wasn't previously known to police. He had two weapons, which he appeared to have owned legally, police said. Special forces were among those sent to the BORG Dreierschützengasse high school, about a kilometer (over half a mile) from Graz's historic center, after a call at 10 a.m. At 11.30 a.m., police wrote on social network X that the school had been evacuated and everyone had been taken to a safe meeting point. Police said they didn't immediately have information on the man's motive, but said that he killed himself in a toilet after fatally shooting nine people. The shooter was a former student at the school who didn't finish his studies, Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said at a press conference in Graz. Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker said there would be three days of national mourning, with the Austrian flag lowered to half-staff and a national minute of mourning at 10 a.m. Wednesday. He said that it was 'a dark day in the history of our country.' Photos from the scene showed a large police deployment, including at least one helicopter and emergency vehicles around the school. President Alexander Van der Bellen said that 'this horror cannot be captured in words.' 'These were young people who had their whole lives ahead of them. A teacher who accompanied them on their way,' he said. 'Schools are symbols for youth, hope and the future,' European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X. 'It is hard to bear when schools become places of death and violence.' Graz, Austria's second-biggest city, is located in the southeast of the country and has about 300,000 inhabitants. Jenne writes for the Associated Press.
Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Austria School Shooting: At Least Eight Reported Dead
A shooting at a school in Austria has left at least eight people dead and several more badly injured, according to local media reports. Austrian police confirmed they and other emergency services are on the scene in Graz, including Cobra, a tactical unit. The school is BORG Dreierschützengasse. Austria's interior ministry confirmed several fatalities at the scene, the country's public broadcaster ORF said. The suspected gunman is believed to have killed himself, ORF reported. Police said in a statement: "A large-scale police operation has been underway in Dreierschützengasse since approximately 10:00 a.m. According to initial findings, shots were heard in a school. The public is urged to avoid this area and follow the instructions of the security forces on site." This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow. Related Articles Natalie Rupnow Update: Wisconsin School Shooter's Father ArrestedAlleged School Shooter Colt Gray's Appearance in Court Has Key Difference'Active Violence' Reported at Minnesota University: Everything We KnowPhoenix Ikner Updates: New Details Emerge on FSU Shooter's Childhood 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
At Least 10 Dead After Shooting at Austrian High School, Police Say
Nine people were killed Tuesday after a gunman opened fire in a school in the city of Graz, Austria, according to state police. The shooter was also found dead, according to police, in what is believed to have been a suicide. Police officers, included specially trained COBRA units, Austria's version of a SWAT team, and a police helicopter, arrived at the crime scene after shots were reported and have started gathering evidence in what was probably the worst school shooting in Europe in years. Among the dead were students and at least one adult, according to remarks by Elke Kahr, Graz's mayor, reported by the Austria Press Agency. Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker said in a post on social media, 'The shooting rampage at a school in Graz is a national tragedy that has deeply shaken our entire country.' Stocker and the interior minister were traveling to Graz. Graz is Austria's second-largest city, after Vienna, and is a vibrant, wealthy university town. It experienced a major mass attack a decade ago, when a man killed three people and wounded about three dozen others after driving a car into crowds on the streets of the city and then attacking bystanders with a knife. In the attack Tuesday, police said they had responded to reports of gunfire in a building at a high school in the north of the city around 10 a.m. local time. Evacuation of the school was completed before noon. A stadium about a mile away was opened as a safe gathering site for students and their parents. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. Copyright 2025
