KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) – Problems with a conveyor system designed to haul rafts to the top of the world’s tallest water slide have forced officials to cancel two scheduled media sneak preview days and could delay the ride’s official opening for the third time.
National and local media members were scheduled to take rides Thursday and Friday on the 17-story, 168-foot-tall Verruckt water slide, but Schlitterbahn Waterpark spokeswoman Winter Prosapio said glitches last weekend with the conveyor hadn’t been resolved in time for that to happen.
There’s a chance the Kansas City, Kansas, attraction will be ready for operation on Sunday – more than a month after it had been slated to open May 23 – as long as the issues have been ironed out, she said.
“When we had problems this weekend, we flew in parts, flew in people, flew in all kinds of stuff,” Prosapio said Wednesday. “Crews are still working toward Sunday. That’s still our goal.”
Verruckt, which means “insane” in German, was certified as the world’s tallest water slide in April by Guinness World Records. The slide sends riders on four-person rafts plummeting at 60 to 70 mph.