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An 11-year-old boy died and 3 others were injured after a rafting accident at an Iowa amusement park

Sydney Bradley   

An 11-year-old boy died and 3 others were injured after a rafting accident at an Iowa amusement park
International2 min read
  • A flipped-over waterpark raft has left one dead and three injured after an accident at an amusement park in Iowa.
  • The 11-year-old boy who died on Sunday had sustained serious injuries from the accident the day before.
  • The park remains open, but has closed the water rafting ride as the accident is investigated.

An 11-year-old boy died on Sunday following a water ride accident at an amusement park in Iowa the day before.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the accident at the Adventureland Park in Atloona, Iowa, which left three others injured.

Six people were on the ride when the raft flipped over on Saturday evening around 7:30 p.m., according to a statement on the Adventureland Park Facebook page that night.

Michael Jaramillo, 11, passed away on Sunday due to injuries sustained from the accident. One other rider - also a minor - is in critical condition, the Atloona Police Department said.

"Adventureland is saddened to learn of the passing of one Guest involved in the Raging River accident," the amusement park wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday.

The Raging River ride remains closed as the investigation continues, the park said.

The white water rafting ride had been a permanent fixture at the Adventureland park since 1983, according to the park's website.

On Friday, the day before the accident, the ride was inspected and deemed to be in "sound working order," the park wrote on Facebook.

The ride has had a fatal accident before, however.

Five years ago, two park employees were assisting riders getting in and out of rafts when suddenly the ride started moving, throwing the two workers off of their feet. One of those employees, Steve Booher, 68, fell three feet onto the ride's conveyor belt and died days later after incurring a fractured skull and brain injury, the Des Moines Register reported in June 2016.

The Iowa amusement park has been fined thousands of dollars by the Iowa Occupational Safety and Health Administration since 2016, according to the Associated Press.

Following the 2016 Raging Rivers incident, the Iowa OSHA fined Adventureland $4,500. In 2018, the agency fined Adventure again for an unrelated incident on a different ride, according to Associated Press. The amusement park settled to pay $14,500.

"Safety is the number one priority at Adventureland," Guy Cook, a personal injury attorney representing Adventureland, told the Associated Press in a statement.

"The Raging River ride has been in operation for nearly four decades. It is a safe ride," Cook said.

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