DUBLIN, Calif. _ Three of the six slides at a new $43 million water park in the San Francisco Bay Area were closed Sunday as city and state officials investigate after a boy was launched from a three-story water slide, landing on the concrete exit next to the ride, at The Wave's grand opening Saturday.
The slide from which the boy fell, the Emerald Plunge, as well as a similar slide adjacent to it called the Dublin Screamer remained closed as staff from the city of Dublin and California's Division of Occupational Safety and Health Administration try to determine what caused the boy to fly off the slide and assess the safety of all the park's slides.
Dublin Assistant City Manager Linda Smith said Sunday that the park closed a third slide, called the Riptide Rider, because staff was re-examining that ride's water pressure.
The description of the Riptide Rider slide on the park's website reads: "Get ready to fly and swirl down seven stories of fun. These slides' unique designs are fast and thrilling with unexpected steep drops and sharp turns. The translucent flume gives spectators a great view of riders zipping through the slide."
The 10-year-old boy who was thrown from the Emerald Plunge slide on Saturday was "just shaken up" and had a scratched shoulder that was treated by first-aid workers, a park spokeswoman said after the incident was witnessed and recorded by a Bay Area News Group photographer covering the opening of the park. The photographer saw scratches on the boy's back. The boy walked away from the incident and was helped by a lifeguard and city employee shortly after noon Saturday.
The Emerald Plunge is an open water slide that plunges at an 80-degree angle before flattening out at the bottom. Park officials said they had contacted slide manufacturer WhiteWater West Industries as well as Cal-OSHA to assess the slide.
Bay Area residents eagerly anticipated the opening of the The Wave. The facility also has three pools, a water playground and a 2,000-seat outdoor performing arts center. It is expected to employ nearly 200 seasonal employees and cost about $2.5 million to operate in its first year.
