Dollywood Accident Attorney

When you go to an amusement park like Dollywood, it’s reasonable to think that you’ll have a great time with your family, and you will all leave unharmed. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Many times, families are involved in accidents at Dollywood and other amusement parks, leaving them with traumatic and sometimes life-threatening injuries.

If you were hurt in an accident at Dollywood theme park and it wasn’t your fault, you might be entitled to significant compensation. Contact the trusted personal injury attorneys at The Terry Law Firm right away. These types of accidents often result in severe harm, but the park’s representatives might try to downplay your injuries and talk you into a settlement that’s much lower than you deserve. 

At The Terry Law Firm, our respected legal team will stand by your side and help fight for the full compensation that you’re owed. When you work with our knowledgeable personal injury attorneys, you can have peace of mind that we’ll do everything we can to seek the best possible outcome in your case.  

If you or a loved were injured in a Dollywood accident, contact The Terry Law Firm today. With over 50 years of experience helping victims throughout East Tennessee, we have the skills and resources to tackle even the toughest personal injury cases. Let us help you. To get started, call us or reach us online to set up a free consultation.

Could Accidents Happen at Dollywood?

When you go to Dollywood, the last thing you want to think about is risk. However, accidents at Dollywood, its sister water park Dolly’s Splash Country, and similar amusement parks in Tennessee and throughout the country happen much more often than we would like to believe. 

Some of the most recent accidents at Dollywood included a tragic summer 2019 accident. After this incident at the Pigeon Forge theme park, several children were transported to the hospital, and at least six people suffered significant injuries, such as concussions, broken bones, and lacerations. 

Victims reported that it took an abnormally long time for emergency personal to respond to the scene, and in the meantime, the facility wasn’t equipped to provide them with even basic first aid. While park officials claim that accidents don’t happen often at Dollywood, they also report that another serious accident happened as recently as December 2018, where a tram driver struck a guardrail.

Types of Potential Accidents and Injuries

Many amusement parks like Dollywood do all they can to make the park seem like a utopia – a place that’s full of nothing but joy and delight – but multiple different scenarios can lead to serious injuries at these parks. Some of the most common causes of theme park accidents include:

• Broken and poorly maintained ride
• Roller coaster malfunctions, including brake failure or cars that derail
• Slip and fall incidents or other premises accidents
• Ride operator errors
• Defective protective lap bars malfunctions, such as separating mid-ride 
• Reckless behavior or other negligence by other theme park customers
• Guests’ known or unknown medical issues, such as heart problems
• Fires
• Electrocution

These types of accidents, along with other similarly horrific accidents, can lead to a wide range of serious and sometimes fatal injuries, such as:

• Traumatic brain injury
• Severed limbs
• Head, back, and neck injuries
• Whiplash
• Spinal cord injuries
• Drowning at water-related rides
• Broken bones
• Internal organ damage
• Lacerations or cuts
• Bruising or internal bleeding
• Torn or sprained ligaments

Theme parks should also have on-site medical staff on hand to assist immediately with any injuries that occur, while waiting for emergency medical services to arrive. Unfortunately, many parks lack the medical services they need, even though accidents occur at theme parks more often than most people realize. 

Injury Statistics in Dollywood Park

Injuries happen every day at theme parks. In fact, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that there were at least 30,000 injuries that required emergency room visits associated with amusement parks in a single recent year. This doesn’t include more minor injuries, such as scrapes and bruises that people often treat themselves or that heal on their own without any treatment.

At Dollywood specifically, there were over 60 significant injuries each year between 2015 and 2017, according to the Amusement Safety Organization. This number jumped to more than 70 significant injuries in 2018. 

Most of the reported injuries at Dollywood took place on the Wild Eagle, Thunderhead, Mystery Mine, Lightning Rod, and Tennessee Tornado rides, and most involved injuries to the head, neck, shoulder, or back.

Proving Liability at Dollywood

To prove that Dollywood was liable for your injuries, you must show that the park or their employees were negligent in some way, and this negligence led to your injuries. Examples of negligence are if the amusement park failed to follow safety standards, properly train employees, or adequately warn people about the risk of rides. 

Theme parks like Dollywood are typically responsible for following nationwide industry standards and hiring inspectors to help make sure they comply with these requirements. They’re also required to document these inspections and submit proof that they meet all of the required national and local safety standards. Additionally, amusement park standards usually require that ride operators are at least 16 years old and that operators are present throughout the time that the ride is operating. 

An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you obtain copies of the park’s safety reports. They can also hire experts like accident reconstruction specialists or investigators to provide evidence if the park violated any industry regulations.

One of the best ways to obtain evidence of your injuries from a park accident is to have your injuries evaluated by a medical professional as soon as possible. The doctor can treat you, plus they can provide a medical report to demonstrate the severity and cause of your injuries.

Contact The Terry Law Firm for Help with a Dollywood Accident

If you were injured in an accident at Dollywood, The Terry Law Firm is here to help. Call our experienced personal injury attorneys today or reach us online to schedule your free confidential consultation.