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A Utah man claims her suffered "permanent disfigurement" after a rollercoaster collision in 2023
According to a recently filed amended complaint, Steven Thorpe alleges a test vehicle on Lagoon amusement park's Primordial coaster struck his scissor lift, catapulting him through the air
In their answer to the initial complaint, the defendants denied nearly every allegation
A Utah man is claiming he suffered “permanent disfigurement” as a result of a roller coaster collision.
According to an amended complaint filed on Aug. 8 against several defendants, a man named Steven Thorpe "suffered extensive injuries” after a roller coaster struck the scissor lift he was working on top of.
The incident allegedly occurred on the popular Primordial coaster at the Lagoon Amusement Park in Farmington, Utah in August 2023. The ride was still under construction at the time. Thorpe, an HVAC technician, was working in the Primordial ride building for a few days prior to the incident.
The amended complaint claims that on Aug. 9, 2023, Thorpe was tasked with troubleshooting some issues with the air system. Lagoon personnel informed him they would be testing the ride at some point during the day, but in the amended complaint, the technician claims he was never given an exact time of day.
ABC4 Utah/YouTube
Primordial rollercoaster entrance at Lagoon Amusement Park in Utahhttps://people-app.onelink.me/HNIa/kz7l4cuf
According to the amended complaint, to access the air registers, Thorpe was positioned atop a raised scissor lift — a mobile, motorized scaffold often used in construction. While in an elevated position on the first floor of the building, the lights suddenly turned off and a test vehicle came down the track. According to Thorpe, he was unable to lower the lift in time to get off it and out of the way.
“The test vehicle struck the scissor lift causing it to tip over,” the amended complaint claims. “[Thorpe] was catapulted out of the scissor lift when it was approximately 19-20 feet up and landed on the ground.”
Thorpe accuses all the named defendants, including the Lagoon Corporation, its parent company, and Actemium (an engineering company) of "negligence," the result of which he says he has caused him to incur medical expenses and lost wages. He also claims the accident left him with "permanent disfigurement."
Judson Burton, an attorney representing Thorpe, spoke to local news out ABC 4 about the ongoing litigation.
“He was taken from Lagoon to McKay-Dee Hospital and he stayed there for approximately a month and had multiple surgeries during that time,” Burton said.
He added: “This accident was fully preventable.”
Thorpe’s attorneys did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
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Attorneys for the Lagoon Corporation responded to the initial complaint, filed back in August 2024. They denied nearly all of Thorpe’s allegations and claimed the technician “was explicitly instructed on the timing of the testing.”
“[Thorpe] was permitted on the first level [of the ride] on a limited basis with specific warnings and restrictions, which he ignored,” their answer, filed on Sept. 14, 2024, claimed.
Attorneys for the park refused PEOPLE’s Aug. 13 request for comment, citing pending litigation.
Read the original article on People
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