Dreamworld inquest: Ride operators represented by Queensland’s best barristers
THE ride operators on duty during the Thunder River Rapids tragedy that left four people dead at Dreamworld will be represented by one of Queensland’s top barristers when an inquest in to the accident starts on Monday.
Crime & Justice
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THE Dreamworld ride operators on duty during the Thunder River Rapids tragedy will be represented by one of Queensland’s top barristers when an inquest in to the accident starts on Monday.
Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett, Roozi Araghi and Cindy Low died when their raft flipped in October, 2016.
An exhaustive police investigation has recommended no criminal charges be laid against any individuals, but Dreamworld’s operating practices will come under the microscope at the inquest, which commences with a two-week sitting at Southport on the Gold Coast.
Coroner James McDougall will examine the maintenance, safety, staffing and modifications of the Thunder River Rapids, while the inquest will also scrutinise the sufficiency of training provided to staff operating the ride.
Two ride operators were on duty at the time, one of Dreamworld’s most senior supervisors and a young woman on her first week operating the attraction.
They are among 23 staff being represented by highly respected Queensland barrister Ralph Devlin, a lawyer who served as a special prosecutor in the Fitzgerald inquiry.
Representing the Medical Board of Queensland, he was also a key figure in the malpractice case of Bundaberg doctor Jayant Patel.
Police investigators used mannequins to run dozens of simulations after the tragedy but were unable to recreate the events which caused the ill-fated raft to flip, killing four of the six people on-board.
Mrs Goodchild’s daughter Ebony and Mrs Low’s son Kieran survived the accident but the Queensland Coroner’s Office would not confirm if the two children would be called on to testify at the inquest.
Mr Devlin, who was unable to be contacted this week, is one of almost a dozen barristers involved in the case.
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