Alton Towers HORROR: Thrillseekers trapped '80ft in the air' on Galactica rollercoaster
ALTON Towers visitors were reportedly stranded '80ft in the air' on a ride today in yet another disaster for the British theme park.
Alton Towers release statement following Galactica incident
Screams and shouts were reportedly heard from those trapped in the air.
Those who were stuck up in the air, as Britain had its hottest day in June since 1976, said they were left up there for half-an-hour.
One said people were left ‘facing the rocks’.
Alton Towers confirmed on Twitter the ride is out of order.
Alton Towers: Multiple riders stuck on Galactica rollercoaster
Galactica broke down in May 2016, leaving nearly 30 people stuck upside down at the top of the first loop of the track.
The ride has reportedly suffered multiple problems today.
One person tweeted: “Just spent 10 minutes stuck on Galactica looking face down at a pile of rocks about 25m below us… Not impressed.”
The Smiler crash at the Staffordshire park, on June 2, 2015, shocked revellers at the theme park and the rest of Britain.
Vicky Balch, then 19, and Leah Washington, then 17, were airlifted to hospital and forced to undergo leg amputations after sustaining serious injuries in the crash.
Galactica, a £12million ride, the world's first virtual reality rollercoaster has been open since April 2016.
Francis Jackson, Alton Towers Operations director, said normal procedures were followed
Fab day @altontowers with my favs 30mins stuck on galatica was interesting!! #funday #besties #brithdayboy
— Michelle neale (@Shellybell84) June 21, 2017
The theme park writes the ride gives visitors the chance to take an “emotional journey”.
It states: “We've combined the experience of our iconic flying rollercoaster with cutting edge Virtual Reality.
“Now you can become a space tourist through this unique combination of physically flying coupled with the breathtakingly emotional journey of travelling through space.”
The reports of problems at the theme park has clearly put people off visiting.
One man wrote on twitter: “Yet another palaver at alton towers, will never ever catch me at that place.”
Operations director Francis Jackson said it was a “minor technical issue” which stopped the ride.
He said the “health and safety of guests is paramount” at Alton Towers and normal procedures were followed.
Galactica ride breaks down at Alton Towers in Staffordshire
Just spent 10 minutes stuck on galactica looking face down at a pile of rocks about 25m below us... Not impressed @altontowers
— Brendan de Bruijn (@brandaan) June 21, 2017
A spokesperson for Alton Towers said the ride was evacuated in a normal and safe way, with the pause being planned to protect riders.
A statement said: “Earlier today, the computer systems on our Galactica ride detected a minor technical issue which caused the ride to stop.
“The ride was operating as it was designed to do. As the health and safety of our guests is paramount, we followed our well-rehearsed procedures in order to get the ride back into the station as quickly and safely as possible.
“The train returned to the station and guests disembarked in the normal way.”