KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Two teens were rescued from the Old Town slingshot ride in Kissimmee after one of the cables broke Thursday night, according to Osceola County Fire Rescue.
Crews said a non-load-bearing cable broke during the ride.
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The ride was about 30 to 40 feet in the air during the rescue.
Investigators said as a safety precaution, the ride can’t lower the pod below 30 feet when the cable is not functioning.
Osceola Tower 72 and City of Kissimmee Fire Department Tower 11 worked together tonight to perform a successful high...
Posted by Osceola County Fire Rescue and EMS on Thursday, March 25, 2021
The riders refused medical treatment.
Firefighters from the Osceola County Fire Rescue and Kissimmee Fire Department assisted in the rescue.
Workers returned to the site Friday morning to investigate what caused the malfunction.
HAPPENING NOW: Workers are out taking a look at the Sling Shot ride after a cable broke last night, forcing two teens to be rescued. https://t.co/mcpHHs2gID pic.twitter.com/olbhMBB9I1
— Mark Lehman (@MarkLehman6) March 26, 2021
According to the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, the attraction is owned and operated by Old Town Slingshot and was originally permitted in November 2001. The ride was last inspected March 19, and no issues were identified, the agency said.
John Stine, the director of marketing and sales for Old Town Slingshot, said the riders were safe during the incident.
“The ride is designed with redundancy, so if something like this does happen, it’s very unusual to begin with, but if it does, then we have a backup system and everything went fine. The only unfortunate situation is they were suspended on the ride for a few hours,” Stine said.
He said the company does daily inspections and the state conducts inspections twice each year.
“We do not open a ride until it’s fully inspected and it was fully inspected and it was good to go,” Stine said.
State officials said there are four of slingshot attractions in Florida with locations in Kissimmee, Daytona Beach, Orlando and Panama City Beach. All four have been closed by the state as a precaution while the manufacturer conducts an investigation. The rides will not reopen until the state consults with the manufacturer and conducts a subsequent inspection, officials said.
“(There is) no timetable. We’ll do it when everything is done the way it needs to be done,” Stine said.