One person died and seven were injured on Sunday after a roller coaster derailed at an amusement park in Stockholm, Sweden, police and the park told AFP.
“One person is unfortunately dead,” Cecilia Björling, spokesperson for Gröna Lund, the official name of the park, which was evacuated, told AFP.
Stockholm police confirmed that seven people were injured and hospitalized.
“We received the alert around 11:39 a.m. (local time), a roller coaster derailed and several people were injured,” Håkan Eriksson of the Swedish capital’s emergency services told AFP. Police and ambulance were dispatched to the scene.
The injured suffered injuries caused by falling accidents, said Helena Boström Thomas, spokesperson for the Stockholm police.
According to Jenny Lagerstedt, correspondent for Swedish television SVT who was on the spot, a car from the “Jetline” attraction would have detached, then fell from very high, carrying several people in the fall.
“I suddenly heard a thud and metallic sound, then the rides started shaking,” she told the Swedish channel. “My husband, who was sitting outside, saw a car detach (from the attraction) and fall.”
“It’s unimaginable,” Culture Minister Parisa Liljestrand told the TT news agency. “I recently visited the park with my family and I can’t even imagine what it must be like when the best of days suddenly turns into a nightmare.”
The “Jetline” roller coaster, a classic in the Gröna Lund amusement park, was inaugurated in 1988 and travels at a speed of around 90km/h.