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What will happen to the Orlando FreeFall ride?
Experts weigh in on the future of the Orlando FreeFall ride that will be taken down in ICON Park after Tyre Sampson was killed after falling from the ride last year.
The shiny crown that once stood atop the Orlando FreeFall has been lowered to the earth. A massive crane is slowly dismantling the 430-foot tower piece by piece. In just a few days the world’s tallest free-standing drop tower will be no more.
"I know that if I was a business person I wouldn't want that ride on my lot," said Amusement Ride Safety Consultant Ken Martin.
Attorneys for the Orlando Slingshot Group, the FreeFall owners, have said they want the ride gone by March 24th.
That day is the anniversary of 14-year-old Tyre Sampson’s tragic fall from the ride.
"Typically when a ride is being taken down, it’s served its purpose, it’s lived its life span," said International Theme Park Consultant Dennis Speigel.
The FreeFall coming down in its current state is an unusual, but not an unheard-of process in the theme park world.
Typically, when rides come down, they are scrapped for whatever value they have left after years of operation.
Although, the FreeFall was practically brand new at the time of the accident.
"This being a relatively new ride, there is always a possibility it could be taken and sold somewhere else," said Martin.
Experts believe selling the ride will likely bring in more money than scrapping it. Although, they say it would have to be sold to a buyer outside of the US as they can’t imagine anyone inside the country would want to deal with the publicity around it.
"If it does move to another park, somewhere else in the world, it will be re-engineered so that the issues that created the problem will be taken care of before anyone would buy it," said Speigel.
Tyre Sampson’s mother says she wants the ride destroyed for good. Orlando Slingshot representatives say parts of the ride will end up in storage for now but they are undecided about what to do with it after that.