According to emergency officials, about 50 people became stuck on the “SkyTower” ride — a 400-foot tall observation tower — for about three hours. The park-goers were about 200 feet above ground at the point the ride malfunctioned.
Officials said the ride stopped because its emergency brakes inadvertently deployed.
Park officials said none of the riders were ever in serious danger. The cause of the emergency brake malfunction was not immediately known.
“The SkyTower cabin is now on the ground and all guests and team members have exited safely,” the park said in a statement posted to Twitter Monday afternoon. “The SeaWorld guest services team and onsite medical personnel worked closely with individual guests to address their immediate needs and assist them in any way possible.”
“All passengers are safe,” the park said in an earlier tweet. “The safety of our guests and team members is SeaWorld’s top priority.”
“It was going down and started jerking and apparently the emergency brake locked up,” one rider told Orlando’s WESH-TV while he was still stuck in the tower. “We are not scared. Everyone is just sitting here, relaxing.”
Monday’s mishap mirrored a similar incident last year at SeaWorld San Diego, where the exact same ride stalled for four hours with nearly 50 people on board.
