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* First-person account of riding world’s tallest waterslide * Police: Kansas boy suffered fatal neck injury on waterslide * Waterslide complaints surface after Kansas boy dies on ride
In his July 9, 2014 photo taken from a video recording, Associated Press reporter Bill Draper rides on Verruckt in Kansas City, Kan. The nylon Velcro straps that hold riders in, can be seen in the photo. At least two people who rode in the last year on the same Kansas waterslide where a 10-year-old boy was killed say Velcro shoulder straps came loose during the raft ride featuring a 17-story drop. It’s unclear whether the straps on “Verruckt” _ German for “insane”, played any role in Sunday’s death of Caleb Schwab, a Kansas lawmaker’s son. (AP Photo/Bill Draper)
FILE – In this July 9, 2014 file photo, riders are propelled by jets of water as they go over a hump while riding a water slide called “Verruckt” at Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, Kan. A 12-year-old boy died Sunday, Aug. 7, 2016, on the Kansas water slide that is billed as the world’s largest, according to officials. Kansas City, Kansas, police spokesman Officer Cameron Morgan said the boy died at the Schlitterbahn Waterpark, which is located about 15 miles west of downtown Kansas City, Missouri. Schlitterbahn spokeswoman Winter Prosapio said the child died on one of the park’s main attractions, Verruckt, a 168-foot-tall water slide that has 264 stairs leading to the top. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
A November 2013 photo shows Schlitterbahn’s new Verrückt speed slide/water coaster in Kansas City, Kan. A spokeswoman for the waterpark in Kansas says crews are still trying to fix a mechanical problem with the world’s tallest water slide. Unless it can be fixed by Sunday, the ride’s official opening may be delayed for a third time.. (AP Photo/The Kansas City Star, Jill Toyoshiba) KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) – A 10-year-old boy was decapitated as he rode a 168-foot tall waterslide at a water park in Kansas, a person familiar with the investigation said Wednesday.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the person is not authorized to speak about Caleb Schwab’s death Sunday on the raft ride at the Schlitterbahn WaterPark in Kansas City, Kansas.
Two women who are not family members were in the raft at the time with the boy and were treated for facial injuries. The boy’s parents – Republican state Rep. Scott Schwab and his wife, Michele – have requested privacy and have not spoken publicly since the death. His funeral is scheduled for Friday.
A spokeswoman for the waterpark on Wednesday declined to discuss the circumstances of the boy’s death. The Guinness World Records has certified the ride called “Verruckt” – or German for “insane” – as the tallest in the world.
