Dreamworld inquest: ‘It has throttled our family’
THE family of some of the Dreamworld ride disaster victims say they are ‘devastated and horrified’ at the evidence that has unfolded in the first week of the inquest. DAY FIVE COVERAGE
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THE family of some of the Dreamworld ride disaster victims say they are ‘devastated and horrified’ at the evidence that has unfolded in the first week of the inquest.
Shayne Goodchild, father of Kate Goodchild and Luke Dorsett, and Ms Goodchild’s partner Dave Turner, spoke out today after the inquest adjourned for the weekend.
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“We are tired and devastated and horrified by the evidence that has come out this week,” they said in a statement through their lawyer, Steven Whybrow.
“We hold Dreamworld totally responsible for this tragic event that could have so easily been avoided.
“It has throttled our family.”
Today Dreamworld ride operator Chloe Brix continued giving evidence into the deaths of Cindy Low, Kate Goodchild, her brother Luke Dorsett and his partner Roozi Araghi in October 2016.
The first week of the Dreamworld inquest adjourned early. There are still 30-plus witnesses scheduled for next week.
Dreamworld CEO Craig Davidson acknowledged it had been a ‘harrowing week’ for families of the victims and said he was ‘truly sorry this happened’.
“Dreamworld’s thoughts remain with the families of the victims who lost their lives in the terrible tragedy almost two years ago,” he said.
“We understand that this has been a harrowing week for them and that they are devastated and horrified.
“We share those feelings. We are truly sorry this happened.
“It is our aim to assist the coroner as best we can to help understand how this tragedy occurred, and what we can do to ensure it never happens again.”
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1.33pm First week of Dreamworld inquest adjourns early. Still 30-plus witnesses scheduled for next week
11.57am Dreamworld rides could break down as many as 20 times a day, the inquest has heard.
Engineer Matthew Robertson said that on busy days, he could be called to as many as 20 “Code sixes” (breakdowns).
He said on quieter days, there could be “virtually zero” breakdowns.
Mr Robertson was called twice to Code 6 alerts on the Thunder River Rapids ride in the hours leading up to the tragedy.
‘RIDICULOUS’ SITUATION: STAFF NOT ALLOWED TO CLOSE RIDE
11.38am A PROBLEM pump on Dreamworld’s Thunder River Rapids ride failed twice in 79 minutes in the hours before the tragedy, the inquest has been told.
It failed again only an hour after the second breakdown, with fatal consequences,
But the inquest heard Dreamworld’s protocols dictated that the ride could only be shut down for the day after three breakdowns.
The ride’s south pump broke down at 11.50am and again at 1.09pm on the day of the tragedy, October 25, 2016.
The pump was re-set and the ride evacuated, the inquest heard.
After the second breakdown, ride operator Sarah Cotter told engineer Matthew Robertson the situation was “ridiculous” and questioned what could be done about the problem pump.
Mr Robertson told her that the ride would be shut down “if it happens again”, the inquest was
told.
OPERATOR SACKED FOR SHUTTING DOWN RIDE
10.58am THE faulty water pump that triggered the Thunder River Rapids ride tragedy failed twice in the days leading up to the disaster.
A document presented at the inquest this morning revealed the ride’s south pump had to be re-set twice by engineers, on October 19 2016 and again four days later.
The pump failed again on October 25, causing water levels on the ride to plunge and rafts to collide, killing four tourists.
Dreamworld engineer Matthew Robertson is being cross-examined about maintenance and service practices at the Coomera theme park.
OPERATOR SACKED FOR SHUTTING DOWN RIDE
10.30am A DREAMWORLD ride operator was sacked four years ago over a similar incident to one that caused the tragedy on the Thunder River Rapids ride, the inquest has heard.
The inquest was told the man was sacked after the incident in November 2014, two years before the disaster in which four tourists were killed.
Ride operator Chloe Brix said she heard her ex-colleague had been sacked after he shut down the ride and restarted it “to bring the raft home”.
OPERATOR ‘WASN’T TOLD ABOUT EMERGENCY BUTTON’
10.10am A THUNDER River Rapids ride operator was never told that a second emergency button could stop the ride more quickly than the main button.
Chloe Brix was giving her second day of evidence at the inquest into the deaths of tourists Cindy Low, Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett and Roozi Araghi on the Dreamworld ride on October 25, 2016.
Ms Brix was cross-examined about her training by the barrister for Ms Low’s family, Matthew Hickey.
Mr Hickey asked if she was aware the second emergency stop button could stop the ride conveyor more quickly than the one on the main control panel.
“I wasn’t aware of that,” Ms Brix replied.
The inquest has previously heard that the secondary button could stop the ride in two seconds, compared to about it eight seconds for the main button.
Ms Brix said she also never received CPR or first-aid training.
RIDE SHUT DOWN A WEEK BEFORE TRAGEDY
A DREAMWORLD ride operator has claimed she was required to shut down the Thunder River Rapids ride in the week before an accident which claimed four lives.
Chloe Brix will continue giving evidence at an inquest on Friday into the deaths of Cindy Low, Kate Goodchild, her brother Luke Dorsett and his partner Roozi Araghi in October 2016.
Ms Brix testified the ride was more “manual” to shut down than other rides, requiring more buttons to be pushed.
She said water pump failures were not uncommon, including a week before the tragedy when she had to shut it down.
The inquest has also heard from ride operator Timothy Williams, who said there was no “practical scenario training” for dealing with emergencies. But he said he had learned the rafts were capable of tipping each other up in deep water.
He also said water levels dropping would not have been considered an emergency under Dreamworld procedures, rather an “operating problem”.
Courtney Williams, who was one of two staff operating the Thunder River Rapids ride on October 25, 2016, also completed giving evidence at an inquest on Thursday.
Ms Williams faced questioning over her training by Dreamworld’s lawyer, Bruce Hodgkinson SC, who asked if supervisors would “come by and talk to you and see that you were operating (rides) all right”.
“No … they never visited,” she replied.
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