World's Fastest-Accelerating Coaster Closed; Riders Keep Breaking Their Bones

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They broke their backs and necks riding the roller coaster in Japan, which goes at what it calls “super death” speed.

The fastest-accelerating roller coaster in the world has been suspended until further notice, after multiple customers reported broken bones from the ride. Since December, at least six riders sustained bone fractures after riding “Do-Dodonpa,” a roller coaster that goes at “super death” speed in the country’s popular Fuji-Q Highland Park, the park’s operator said. Four of them said they broke their neck or back, a spokesperson for the park told VICE World News.

The incidents, alerted to authorities on Aug. 17, are baffling officials. Built in 2001, the ride goes from 0 to 112 miles per hour in 1.56 seconds, making it the fastest-accelerating roller coaster in the world. But the park said it was the first time riders broke their bones on the ride since it went into operation two decades ago ... there were no reports of serious injuries, including bone fractures, until December.

No technical issues were found upon initial investigation, according to Fuji-Q Highland. The ride’s manufacturing company, Sansei Technologies said it didn’t know what caused the injuries. Although the Japanese government hasn’t found the reason for these injuries, Naoya Miyasato, an architecture professor from Nihon University, said it could likely be an issue with the roller coaster’s rapid acceleration. At its peak, the ride’s acceleration is more than three times the force of gravity—that’s comparable to the G-force experienced by astronauts during a rocket launch.

Statistics from the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions show that
the likelihood of being seriously injured on a roller coaster in a U.S. amusement park is about one in 15.5 million rides.

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