Alton Towers Smiler crash down to "human error"

Theme park operator Merlin Entertainments said the crash on the Smiler ride at Alton Towers that left four people seriously injured was caused by “human error”.

An investigation by the theme park revealed that staff misunderstood a shutdown message and instead wrongly restarted the ride, which has been closed since the crash in June.

The park said in a statement: "The investigation concluded that the incident was the result of human error culminating in the manual override of the ride safety control system without the appropriate protocols being followed.

"The investigation also identified areas where protocols and the training of employees should be improved. There were found to be no technical or mechanical problems with the ride itself."

Victims Leah Washington and Vicky Balch were forced to have a leg amputated as a result of the crash, while Joe Pugh and Daniel Thorpe suffered serious leg injuries.

The ride is due to reopen next year following the implementation of several new safety measures such as additional CCTV and enhanced staff training.

Importantly, an additional level of authorisation will also be added to the existing supervisory protocols so that no manual override process can be completed without the authorisation and attendance of a senior member of staff.

‘We are confident that lessons have been learned and that appropriate action has been taken to address all the issues raised by our investigation and we believe our core conclusions will be in line with the HSE findings,” Alton Towers said.

At 1443 GMT, Merlin Entertainments shares were down 2.8% to 394.90p.