One person has been killed and nine others injured in a rollercoaster accident at a theme park in Sweden.
Witnesses said the Jetline ride at the Grona Lund amusement park in Stockholm had partly derailed and a helicopter, ambulances and fire engines were sent to the scene.
Police and park officials said nine children and adults were being treated at hospital, including three with severe injuries.
A statement on Grona Lund’s website said: “A serious accident has taken place on the Jetline. We are working with the rescue services. The park is closed for now.”
“This is tragic and shocking, and regrettably we’ve learned that one person has died,” park spokesperson Annika Troselius told Swedish broadcaster SVT.
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Pic: TT News Agency via AP
A witness standing below the ride said they heard “strange noises that didn’t sound like the usual noise and screaming”.
The witness looked up and saw “this huge piece of the wheel of the carriage fall from the sky and hit the track”.
They added that “the train stopped and people were flying out, falling out of the carriages”.
“There was total panic,” the witness said.
“Sadly the response wasn’t very good. The staff didn’t seem able to deal with it.
“It was like they had no training, how to deal with crowd control when these things happen.
“So me and a few others tried to help out, move some people, move others away so the rescuers could get there.
“It was really chaotic.”
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The Jetline rollercoaster pictured in 2009. Pic: AP
Cornelia, who had been on the ride with her son, told TV4 that people ran away when the incident happened.
“There was a lot of screaming. No one knew what was going on,” she said, adding that some people jumped over a fence to help.
Sweden’s Expessen quoted a police officer as saying several people were found on the floor, while several more were left stuck on the ride.
Jenny Lagerstedt, who was visiting the park with family, said she heard a metallic noise and saw the track shaking.
“My husband saw a rollercoaster car with people in it falling to the ground,” she told SVT.
A witness queuing nearby told Expessen he saw the rollercoaster’s wheels starting to come off.
Jetline reaches 56mph (90kmh) and is 30m (98ft) high, carries more than a million people per year, and costs 90 kronor to ride (£6.60), according to the park’s website.
It also says all rides are checked daily for safety and that Dekra, a state control body, inspects them annually.
