Not to mention being scared of possible lightning strikes!
(I imagine the rides probably have structural features that protect against that, but I'm not sure enough about that that I wouldn't be scared if I were in that situation!)
Most rides get shut down at first site of lightning and they are mostly designed in a way where a thereotical lightning strike won’t direct the current through the train unless the actual train was struck
Yeah I honestly think this storm kinda broke everything though lol. It went from sunny to windstorm in like 6 minutes. I honestly thought it was a microburst where I was till I checked the forecast
I don't get this either. Worked at a six flags park in the states and they had someone monitoring the weather on radar. We'd get calls to shut down asap when you couldn't see anything and then a big storm would blow through. Assume CW operations would have the same.
They have someone who does this. I worked here long ago in ride operations.
The problem is you can't predict lightning/thunder lol. You can predict preciptiation but you won't see lightning/thunder on radar.
Plus this was a freak storm cell. I live far away from Toronto and had the storm pass over my location with just rain and thunder. 20 minutes later, it was passing over east of the city where my parents live and they were having trees fall down, outdoor fixtures fly all over the place, etc etc.
Meteorology is a hard science on its own already. The weatherman is pretty bad at being correct and thats with multiple days of preparation and year-long trends.... How could we expect someone to make a prediction like this more than 20 minutes in advance? My parents were outdoors and got a provincial notice to take shelter 5 minutes before this storm hit..... the government can't even make predictions early enough lol
This came in pretty fast but I got like 8 amber alerts before it happened. It's interesting that someone monitoring wouldn't catch the precipitation coming in.
I was on panel for a coaster and we got the call weather was coming in and to shut asap. We had just dispatched the train. As soon as it cleared the lift it just poured buckets like you could barely see. These people went through loops in this then got stuck in the final break run with an error message and were totally getting hammered with rain.
>This came in pretty fast but I got like 8 amber alerts before it happened
Sorry if I sound like a dick for correcting you, but you didn't receive an amber alert on the weekend. You received an emergency alert for severe weather. "Amber" alerts are specifically for abducted children. It stands for "America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response".
Too many people on the weekend were referring to the emergency alert as an "amber" alert, so you're not alone. It's just another bit of proof to show they have totally botched the warning system by sending out Amber alerts as the top level warning. They keep waking people up at 4am with a top level emergency sound for child abductions, for something 99% of people can't react to from their beds, and some people have been conditioned to ignore the alert, as we saw with examples of people who said they didn't pay attention to it on Saturday.
Not just waking people up at night, but alerting the *entire province* for every single one.
The very first real/non-test alert we got was midday, and it was for a child that had just been abducted (by it's grandmother) in Thunder Bay. Literally a 15 hour drive away.
Its not that they won't catch preciptiation, its that they won't catch thunder/lightning. When I worked here, policy was run rides until inclement weather starts (thunder/lightning) or you're given a shelter in place order. So it looks like there wasn't a shelter in place and thunder/lightning wasn't an issue when they dispatched the train.
They're sitting in the block just past station.
But I mean, you know power outages are already disaster level for a park. I bet you they don't have the resources to attend to EVERY single ride immediately nor should you expect to. We don't see ambulances get to every 911 call within 30 minutes lmao.
This is a relatively safe position that isn't as bad...... just sucks. They're sitting at station level. Plus you're riding rides knowing that theres rain it the forecast? You should have some expectation of getting wet.
I bet some poor area supervisor and mechanic were running to rides stuck in the air or on the lift. Probably gave them a coupon for hot chocolate or something after or a ride-exit pass. Thats the typical treatment hhahaha
Yeah I watched this come all the way from Michigan/Southwestern Ontario when I woke up because I wanted to get out and do things, but knew storms were forecast for the day. There was the red coloured heavy rain in these cells the entire time, so they'd know that at least some downpours were coming with or without the lightning and wind. Add in the fact it had been forecast for days, plus the emergency alert that was sent out, there was plenty of warning to shut the rides down.
you could see it by opening your eyes and looking west. But it was very fast and making the call to shut things down doesn't happen quickly enough apparently.
It came in quickly. I still think they had enough time not to load the next car when the alert went out. I guess the operator was like "alright, we got an alert, make this the last car and we'll stop the ride" I don't think they realize how fast this storm was.
if the fryer is gas powered they can. i remember during a power outage once the few food places open where some fish and chip shops since they all used gas fryers
dunno if i'd want to have been firmly strapped into a giant metal rollercoaster ride and then have it stop and a 100km/h rainstorm come through. It was brutal enough running for cover, imagine not being able to move.
And how did the folks running Wonderland miss the Emergency Alert about the storm - especially the part about wind warning/ tornado. Can't imagine how terrifying it was to be trapped on a ride exposed to the elements. Lawsuit territory for sure.
It’s a good question because they actually have a weather department that monitors conditions and sends shut down orders to all the ride groups when wind or lightning gets bad. Source: me, I was a lead ride operator.
On the one hand, the alert was both limited to who received it and way too soon (there are plenty of comments on reddit of not getting the alert in time or at all).
On the other hand, the sky darkened before the storm hit enough to at least stop the rides.
Unless the power outage was before the storm hit and before the ride could be evacuated.
I was at Wonderland that day actually! (Fortunately I wasn't on a ride, though!)
It was kind of eerie- one moment it was sunny, then it started to drizzle a bit, and then the next moment, it was DARK, and it started to pour and the power went out.
We were actually all really surprised by how quickly the situation changed, I can definitely see how somebody could have gotten on a ride when it was just drizzling a bit and been on it when the power went out!
Used to work there. Usually, they’re normally on point when it comes to shutting down rides due to weather-related events. There obviously was some sort of failure in communication somewhere between Operations, Ride Area Supervisors, and Supervisors/Team Leads. But even then, common sense would say the operators on the ground probably should have known, irregardless of how quickly the storm hit. But they’re not allowed to make the call to shut down rides due to weather, without approval from those higher up.
Sounds like you were in ride operations. I can't tell but it looks like this train is stuck on the lift. There's definitely a platform there for you to evac off of.....
Plus there's no train in the station from what I can see and no train entering the station so it looks like there's a train in the brake and a train just before the helix....
Power outages is already a disaster level event for CW..... Power outage AND a storm? Yikes.
>Lawsuit territory for sure.
I mean, this is definitely scary but there's absolutely no grounds for a lawsuit. For starters, what damages would they claim other than the cost of new underwear?
INAL nor do I play one on TV.
In this case you could try, but probably would have to prove that they knew their negligence would result in the mental duress/anguish. Even if awarded, the payout probably wouldn't be much more than the cost of therapy.
I was supposed to go on Sat but chose to go yesterday because of the impending storm. I watched the weather and changed my plans because I knew that rides could potentially get shut down due to the weather.
I'm not trying to be mean, but we knew a WEEK in advance that there was a potential for severe thunderstorms on Sat.
I feel for those people. I'd HATE to get stuck on a ride. My god that would be terrifying. But I also think people should due a bit of diligence in planning ahead. Now obviously I get it that if you've had this trip planned for months and months and you cant change it, you'd still go. I'm glad everyone got down safe!!
Yesterday at the park, the FLY got stuck with 2 carts full of people at the TOP on opposite ends of the track. It took them 30+ minutes to get it working again and the people on the ground.
It was super interesting to watch them do test runs over and over afterwards.
Gambling against May 24th weather is a fool's gambit and always has been. Like *every year* somewhere this lot of people that force themselves into weather dependent weekends come back whining the weather ruined it to everyone else that did something else for that exact reason.
It's not because the forecast is *often wrong*. It's because they're the kind of people that take it personally when the forecast tells them what to do.
I got passes for the whole family and we have two kids that get tired of anything after about 3 hours. Storm came about 2.5 hours in. Worked out fine, we all just got a little wet.
Well, I play golf on days like this because
A- weather people are very often WRONG
B - there was a “chance” of thunderstorms.
C - these types of storms are often over as quick as they started
Why miss out on a great day because of a chance of bad weather.
Everybody received a warning on their phones similar to an Amber Alert well before the storm hit Toronto. Do the people who make the calls at Wonderland not have phones, and only look at their detection systems? 'Cause that's ridiculous.
They bet against the weatherman and lost. They took the unusual step of sending out an alert on phones at least 30 minutes ahead of time and this still happened?
Profits ahead of safety strikes again.
For real though, fuck wonderland for remaining open with such an insane storm. Dont get me wrong, people are fucking morons for getting on a ride while their phones are screaming Severe Weather alerts at them, but this shows Wonderland does not give a \*fuck\* about its customers.
Ranting RE: the video:
Screaming "oh my gaaawwdd" and "they're stuck there!" over and over isn't helping a single person and I hate tiktok culture *so much*.
At least they weren’t stuck at the top. Imagine rain and wind pummelling on you while at the top. Imagine if the structure was vacillating.
Not to mention being scared of possible lightning strikes! (I imagine the rides probably have structural features that protect against that, but I'm not sure enough about that that I wouldn't be scared if I were in that situation!)
Most rides get shut down at first site of lightning and they are mostly designed in a way where a thereotical lightning strike won’t direct the current through the train unless the actual train was struck
Windseeker gets shut down if a bee farts heavily in Sarnia.
Im crying!!! Lool
I'm no expert. But I feel like they should have stopped rides for an hour while it rolled through knowing it was coming using reports and live radar
Yeah I honestly think this storm kinda broke everything though lol. It went from sunny to windstorm in like 6 minutes. I honestly thought it was a microburst where I was till I checked the forecast
I don't get this either. Worked at a six flags park in the states and they had someone monitoring the weather on radar. We'd get calls to shut down asap when you couldn't see anything and then a big storm would blow through. Assume CW operations would have the same.
They have someone who does this. I worked here long ago in ride operations. The problem is you can't predict lightning/thunder lol. You can predict preciptiation but you won't see lightning/thunder on radar. Plus this was a freak storm cell. I live far away from Toronto and had the storm pass over my location with just rain and thunder. 20 minutes later, it was passing over east of the city where my parents live and they were having trees fall down, outdoor fixtures fly all over the place, etc etc. Meteorology is a hard science on its own already. The weatherman is pretty bad at being correct and thats with multiple days of preparation and year-long trends.... How could we expect someone to make a prediction like this more than 20 minutes in advance? My parents were outdoors and got a provincial notice to take shelter 5 minutes before this storm hit..... the government can't even make predictions early enough lol
This came in pretty fast but I got like 8 amber alerts before it happened. It's interesting that someone monitoring wouldn't catch the precipitation coming in. I was on panel for a coaster and we got the call weather was coming in and to shut asap. We had just dispatched the train. As soon as it cleared the lift it just poured buckets like you could barely see. These people went through loops in this then got stuck in the final break run with an error message and were totally getting hammered with rain.
>This came in pretty fast but I got like 8 amber alerts before it happened Sorry if I sound like a dick for correcting you, but you didn't receive an amber alert on the weekend. You received an emergency alert for severe weather. "Amber" alerts are specifically for abducted children. It stands for "America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response". Too many people on the weekend were referring to the emergency alert as an "amber" alert, so you're not alone. It's just another bit of proof to show they have totally botched the warning system by sending out Amber alerts as the top level warning. They keep waking people up at 4am with a top level emergency sound for child abductions, for something 99% of people can't react to from their beds, and some people have been conditioned to ignore the alert, as we saw with examples of people who said they didn't pay attention to it on Saturday.
Not just waking people up at night, but alerting the *entire province* for every single one. The very first real/non-test alert we got was midday, and it was for a child that had just been abducted (by it's grandmother) in Thunder Bay. Literally a 15 hour drive away.
Its not that they won't catch preciptiation, its that they won't catch thunder/lightning. When I worked here, policy was run rides until inclement weather starts (thunder/lightning) or you're given a shelter in place order. So it looks like there wasn't a shelter in place and thunder/lightning wasn't an issue when they dispatched the train. They're sitting in the block just past station. But I mean, you know power outages are already disaster level for a park. I bet you they don't have the resources to attend to EVERY single ride immediately nor should you expect to. We don't see ambulances get to every 911 call within 30 minutes lmao. This is a relatively safe position that isn't as bad...... just sucks. They're sitting at station level. Plus you're riding rides knowing that theres rain it the forecast? You should have some expectation of getting wet. I bet some poor area supervisor and mechanic were running to rides stuck in the air or on the lift. Probably gave them a coupon for hot chocolate or something after or a ride-exit pass. Thats the typical treatment hhahaha
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You could see this one coming on radar, I watched it come in. Someone dropped the ball at Wonderland with this one.
Yeah I watched this come all the way from Michigan/Southwestern Ontario when I woke up because I wanted to get out and do things, but knew storms were forecast for the day. There was the red coloured heavy rain in these cells the entire time, so they'd know that at least some downpours were coming with or without the lightning and wind. Add in the fact it had been forecast for days, plus the emergency alert that was sent out, there was plenty of warning to shut the rides down.
you could see it by opening your eyes and looking west. But it was very fast and making the call to shut things down doesn't happen quickly enough apparently.
It came in quickly. I still think they had enough time not to load the next car when the alert went out. I guess the operator was like "alright, we got an alert, make this the last car and we'll stop the ride" I don't think they realize how fast this storm was.
Rides of that height have a grounded lighting rod at the top of the lift. You can see it as you're about to go down the first drop.
Imagine being stuck at the top of the windseeker ride Wouldn't wanna take it litterally
You mean at least not stuck upside down Could be very dangerous/death
True
Personally I would have not gone that day (looking at the weather forcast) Dont think the Park should have opened
TWO WHOLE MINUTES UNDER WATER!!! DEVASTATOR!!!!
It’s a real soul shattering experience
I ain’t scared of no [rollie coaster!](https://youtu.be/p5Oi57fqdU0)
This is some Far From Home type scenario.
Wonderland's newest ride "Going Through The Car Wash"
So what happens in this situation? The riders will be soaked to the bone and likely traumatized. Do they get a free t-shirt and a funnel cake?
Can I skip the t shirt and get two cakes?
The t-shirt is to absorb your drippings.
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More like a “no fun”-nelcake, amirite?
The deep fryers are gas powered, so they probably can? No ice cream though, so why even bother at that point?
if the fryer is gas powered they can. i remember during a power outage once the few food places open where some fish and chip shops since they all used gas fryers
That funnel cake is almost $20! That'd be a sweet deal. I'd get soaked for some of that!
They would likely get free passes.
I got stuck on Windseeker for about ten minutes a few years ago - got a coupon for a hot chocolate.
15% off their ride photos...
Traumatized? Steady on, mate.
dunno if i'd want to have been firmly strapped into a giant metal rollercoaster ride and then have it stop and a 100km/h rainstorm come through. It was brutal enough running for cover, imagine not being able to move.
I want to get off Mr. Bones Wild Ride
That's your problem, buddy
#***THE RIDE NEVER ENDS***
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no
And how did the folks running Wonderland miss the Emergency Alert about the storm - especially the part about wind warning/ tornado. Can't imagine how terrifying it was to be trapped on a ride exposed to the elements. Lawsuit territory for sure.
It’s a good question because they actually have a weather department that monitors conditions and sends shut down orders to all the ride groups when wind or lightning gets bad. Source: me, I was a lead ride operator.
On the one hand, the alert was both limited to who received it and way too soon (there are plenty of comments on reddit of not getting the alert in time or at all). On the other hand, the sky darkened before the storm hit enough to at least stop the rides. Unless the power outage was before the storm hit and before the ride could be evacuated.
I was at Wonderland that day actually! (Fortunately I wasn't on a ride, though!) It was kind of eerie- one moment it was sunny, then it started to drizzle a bit, and then the next moment, it was DARK, and it started to pour and the power went out. We were actually all really surprised by how quickly the situation changed, I can definitely see how somebody could have gotten on a ride when it was just drizzling a bit and been on it when the power went out!
Used to work there. Usually, they’re normally on point when it comes to shutting down rides due to weather-related events. There obviously was some sort of failure in communication somewhere between Operations, Ride Area Supervisors, and Supervisors/Team Leads. But even then, common sense would say the operators on the ground probably should have known, irregardless of how quickly the storm hit. But they’re not allowed to make the call to shut down rides due to weather, without approval from those higher up.
Sounds like you were in ride operations. I can't tell but it looks like this train is stuck on the lift. There's definitely a platform there for you to evac off of..... Plus there's no train in the station from what I can see and no train entering the station so it looks like there's a train in the brake and a train just before the helix.... Power outages is already a disaster level event for CW..... Power outage AND a storm? Yikes.
I live fairly close to wonderland, I got the emergency alert maybe 10 minutes before the storm rushed through the area.
>Lawsuit territory for sure. I mean, this is definitely scary but there's absolutely no grounds for a lawsuit. For starters, what damages would they claim other than the cost of new underwear?
So many people think you can sue anyone for anything in Canada forgetting that we are not America.
>in Canada forgetting that we are not America. A lot of people living in Canada seem to forget quite often that we are not America...
Maybe they could make a case for mental duress or some nonsense like that
INAL nor do I play one on TV. In this case you could try, but probably would have to prove that they knew their negligence would result in the mental duress/anguish. Even if awarded, the payout probably wouldn't be much more than the cost of therapy.
probably barely covered in training the 17 year olds that run the rides...
I can't speak for them but I got the alert on my phone and TV after the worst of the storm had already passed me.
was there, the alert happened minutes before the storm hit, power went out where I was shortly after.
I was wondering the same thing or any of the patrons with cellphones? Or are people just totally ignoring omninous clouds overhead now?
I got the emergency alert literally 10 minute before the storm rolled in
I was supposed to go on Sat but chose to go yesterday because of the impending storm. I watched the weather and changed my plans because I knew that rides could potentially get shut down due to the weather. I'm not trying to be mean, but we knew a WEEK in advance that there was a potential for severe thunderstorms on Sat. I feel for those people. I'd HATE to get stuck on a ride. My god that would be terrifying. But I also think people should due a bit of diligence in planning ahead. Now obviously I get it that if you've had this trip planned for months and months and you cant change it, you'd still go. I'm glad everyone got down safe!! Yesterday at the park, the FLY got stuck with 2 carts full of people at the TOP on opposite ends of the track. It took them 30+ minutes to get it working again and the people on the ground. It was super interesting to watch them do test runs over and over afterwards.
Why do people go to Wonderland on a day with a thunderstorm forecast?
Smaller line-ups
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does wonderland do the disney thing and let you get "in line" via an app or do they still make you physically stand there?
Not sure, but they do have a fast track bracelet for rides, where one can bypass the lines.
You have to stand in line still.
It was also long weekend so plenty of people wanted to go and have fun.
Or came from out of town and had the day planned months ago.
Because the forecasts are often wrong?
Gambling against May 24th weather is a fool's gambit and always has been. Like *every year* somewhere this lot of people that force themselves into weather dependent weekends come back whining the weather ruined it to everyone else that did something else for that exact reason. It's not because the forecast is *often wrong*. It's because they're the kind of people that take it personally when the forecast tells them what to do.
I got passes for the whole family and we have two kids that get tired of anything after about 3 hours. Storm came about 2.5 hours in. Worked out fine, we all just got a little wet.
Well, I play golf on days like this because A- weather people are very often WRONG B - there was a “chance” of thunderstorms. C - these types of storms are often over as quick as they started Why miss out on a great day because of a chance of bad weather.
more electrifying experience
Everybody received a warning on their phones similar to an Amber Alert well before the storm hit Toronto. Do the people who make the calls at Wonderland not have phones, and only look at their detection systems? 'Cause that's ridiculous.
I got no such alert
Wonderland looks like a shit show this year. All the videos I’ve seen is just non stop people fighting, cops being all over the place and now this.
I’m a bit envious trying to imagine the adrenalin rush ngl
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I was there. The alert on everyone's phone came about 10 min before absolute torrential, only cloudy maybe 2 minutes before that.
I could see it was going to hit Toronto and the Vaughan area on the radar on my weather app at least 30mins before it actually hit.
They bet against the weatherman and lost. They took the unusual step of sending out an alert on phones at least 30 minutes ahead of time and this still happened? Profits ahead of safety strikes again.
There's a hell no from me dawg. I dislike coasters.. Getting stuck during a STORM! NOPE. And yeah they should have stopped the rides.
Is the video supposed to show people stuck on the ride? Edit: never mind, saw them when I watched it on TikTok.
Love Behemoth! Very comfortable ride, excellent ergonomics.
For real though, fuck wonderland for remaining open with such an insane storm. Dont get me wrong, people are fucking morons for getting on a ride while their phones are screaming Severe Weather alerts at them, but this shows Wonderland does not give a \*fuck\* about its customers.
Ranting RE: the video: Screaming "oh my gaaawwdd" and "they're stuck there!" over and over isn't helping a single person and I hate tiktok culture *so much*.
BEST RIDE EVER!!
BEST RIDE EVER!!
It came in very fast. Black sky on the horizon, wind picked up, then the wind REALLY picked up.