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Quimera accident at La Feria Chapultepec Magico

Nicky Borrill said:
I think my thought process was that maybe some of the larger metal parts of the trains and wheel assemblies were difficult, or maybe even impossible, to source replacements for. All metal mechanical parts have a finite life, even with proper maintenance. My thoughts were based on an assumption though, and so probably not correct at all. But I never meant to imply that Schwarzkopf's were dodgy.

Would be interesting to know how readily available all of the parts are, given the lack of an OEM manufacturer and the ever reducing customer base for any aftermarket manufacturer of such parts.
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I believe Gerstlauer make replacement Schwartzkopf parts. Can't remember where I heard that though. A lot of engineers moved between manufacturers (e.g. arrow and RMC) and I believe originally some went to Gerstlauer, not 100% sure though but defo heard somewhere that they supply parts for them.

EDIT from Wikipedia: "In 1981 Hubert Gerstlauer, a former employee of the Schwarzkopf GmbH, founded "Gerstlauer Elektro GmbH". With this company he delivered electric and pneumatic equipment for Schwarzkopf's facilities. After final bankruptcy of Schwarzkopf in 1992, Gerstlauer acquired part of their production halls and continued the manufacture of amusement rides and roller coasters. The company was renamed "Gerstlauer Amusement Rides GmbH" in March 2007."

Also found a quote from a post on TPR claiming that Maurer-Söhne and SAT-Rides also make their parts.
 
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SilverArrow said:
I believe Gerstlauer make replacement Schwartzkopf parts. Can't remember where I heard that though. A lot of engineers moved between manufacturers (e.g. arrow and RMC) and I believe originally some went to Gerstlauer, not 100% sure though but defo heard somewhere that they supply parts for them.

EDIT from Wikipedia: "In 1981 Hubert Gerstlauer, a former employee of the Schwarzkopf GmbH, founded "Gerstlauer Elektro GmbH". With this company he delivered electric and pneumatic equipment for Schwarzkopf's facilities. After final bankruptcy of Schwarzkopf in 1992, Gerstlauer acquired part of their production halls and continued the manufacture of amusement rides and roller coasters. The company was renamed "Gerstlauer Amusement Rides GmbH" in March 2007."

Also found a quote from a post on TPR claiming that Maurer-Söhne and SAT-Rides also make their parts.
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Well... Seems there’s no excuse for poor maintenance then. Thank you for taking the time to source that information, it’s interesting to see that there actually seem to be a few supply channels for Schwarzkopf parts.
 
This accident is horrifying and the fact that a few of my close friends rode this recently is a scary thought.

It's also quite scary how similar this is to the Mindbender incident. It's very obvious that this ride was ran much faster than intended and probably did not get as much maintenance as it should have.
 
Just ****ing horrible to see, stumbled across the more graphic images on Facebook and it's just not something you ever link in your mind to a trip to a theme park.

It does suggest a lack-of-maintenance issue.
 
Smithy said:
Just ****ing horrible to see, stumbled across the more graphic images on Facebook and it's just not something you ever link in your mind to a trip to a theme park.

It does suggest a lack-of-maintenance issue.
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I did notice something from those disgusting images though, as they also showed extreme close ups of the undercarriage. In the UK and EU they put markers on every bolt and nut, to show if anything turns loose even slightly. You’ve all seen those reassuringly intact blobs / lines of... whatever it is... on every nut and bolt. There was nothing of the sort on this ride. Not for one minute suggesting this is even a factor in this accidnet, but it is interesting to note the different safety / maintenence standards in different countries.
 
Smithy said:
Just ****ing horrible to see, stumbled across the more graphic images on Facebook and it's just not something you ever link in your mind to a trip to a theme park.

It does suggest a lack-of-maintenance issue.
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Careful what you say before a certain cretin wades in off his own site telling you you are NOT QUALIFIED TO MAKE SUCH SUGGESTIONS!

When I used to stay at Flamingo Land when I was younger I remember speaking to the operations chap about how regularly they needed to replace/repair the wheels on it. When it was wet weather they used to send it round and if it got to the final brake run under a certain time it was basically going too fast to run safely and they closed it. From what I’ve read, the brake trims weren’t exactly being utilised by the Mexican park!

This sounds like a GP comment too but I did once see it malfunction with a loud crack on a test run. It limped home and it turned out to be a wheel problem again.

That first drop was unnatural. The way the train shunted into that twist half way down the drop was destined to cause issues. Say what you like about Flamingos operations but they were always precautious in my experience. They did have an accident with the ride but it was op error (tried to nip to the toilet in the unit in the middle of the supports while the train was running!)
 
I'm surprised no-one mentioned Zierer. They are also known for making replacement parts, at least for the Zierer/Schwarzkopf coasters such as Lisebergbanan, Jetline, Knightmare, etc.
 
CrashCoaster said:
I'm surprised no-one mentioned Zierer. They are also known for making replacement parts, at least for the Zierer/Schwarzkopf coasters such as Lisebergbanan, Jetline, Knightmare, etc.
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Oh yeah forgot about that one. Then you've got the BHS thing as well. In a nutshell, loads of people have been or are involved!
 
I am pretty sure Barth must be collecting all the Schwarzkopf parts from rides that are either closing or getting new trains from Gerstlauer. After all, Olympia and Alpina are quite large and must be in need of a lot of hardware.

Either way, the Mexican accident is horrible and it's something that should never happen. I am curious to know what they will do with Cascabel (Schwarzkopf Shuttle Loop) after this accident.
 
When I read this story I was thinking, "That looks a lot like a Schwartzkopf coaster," and after a quick search this was confirmed. My local Schwartzkopf is the Shockwave running at SFoT, which I ride about every week; I hope they are maintaining their cars better here in the states!
 
Pierre said:
That first drop was unnatural. The way the train shunted into that twist half way down the drop was destined to cause issues. Say what you like about Flamingos operations but they were always precautious in my experience. They did have an accident with the ride but it was op error (tried to nip to the toilet in the unit in the middle of the supports while the train was running!)
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This. I vividly remember my first lap on it and that feeling of getting yanked towards the ground and thrown to the right. The ride's dynamics were just unbelievable.

jonnycat said:
When I read this story I was thinking, "That looks a lot like a Schwartzkopf coaster," and after a quick search this was confirmed. My local Schwartzkopf is the Shockwave running at SFoT, which I ride about every week; I hope they are maintaining their cars better here in the states!
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Luckily, the only elements on Shockwave that match Quimera's intensity are the vertical loops. Shockwave's turns are much more gentle and lack the vicious transitions that likely degraded Quimera's trains.
 
I took quite a hiatus here but signed in to commet on this...

So horrible - condolences to all families that are affected by this tragedy.

While there is a strong indication due to the reason for this accident we have to wait for the results of the official investigation - sadly those are seldom reported by the media.

1st: I wonder if they will fly in experts from the German TÜV and/or Gerstlauer/Zierer/Maurer to add their expertise to the investigation as they know more about these coasters than anyone in Mexico I persume

2nd: On the webcams for Oktoberfest (Olympia Looping) and Cannstatter Wasn (Alpina-Bahn) you could see that those Schwarzkopf coasters were running all weekend. So unlike the accident with the KMG Afterburner were similar rides stood still worldwide I assume the showmen Barth and Bruch do not assume a basic engineering fault

3rd: Remeber when Skyline park tried to aquire Thriller a few years back? They aborted that venture as all of the original documentation was missing - and I think its safe to assume that includes the maintenance plans and documentation - however it was unsure if those got lost in Mexico or in the USA. They also mentioned that the ride itself was in pitiful condition and it would no longer fit their budget to refurbish the ride

If this really comes down to maintenence problems I have to reconsider Mexican parks in their ride safety status - so far I would only exlude SF:Mexico from this....sad overall...
 
Tonkso said:
Re: Maintenance, didn't Flamingo get rid of this coaster specifically because it was becoming a maintenance nightmare?
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I believe so especially after reading @Pierre post about how regularly the wheels needed changing.

Knowing what we know about the Schwarkopf trains post Mind Bender accident, with this particular Schwarkopf coaster being so harsh on the wheels coupled with a park slacking in maintenance, this really was an accident waiting to happen.
 
Update: Spanish article from milenio.com

What I could gather from Google Translate:
  • Maintenence issues are under investigation
  • Source of replacement parts is under investigation
  • Similarity to accident with Mindbender at Galaxyland is noted
  • Park will be closed at least two more weeks for investigations on site
  • It is considered to revoke the operating license to be re-issued preferrably to international park operator
 
Moved so this is all in one place.

Not promising for the park though. Having the park shut like that probably helps facilitate the investigation (no people in the way, allows full inspections of all rides by the authorities, etc).
 
Hopefully the park is allowed to reopen in better hands. I know a lot of recent visitors probably thought that the place was a dump, but it really is an interesting park with three incredibly unique coasters.
 
The magazine Chilango reports that there are several parties interested in developing new projects on the now closed territory. They mention Six Flags Mexico SA de CV as one party of interest, but I am not sure how this mixes with the Six Flags Group. The interested have to hand in plans until the 18th of March and in April the future owner will be announced.
 
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