Two children had ‘miracle escape’ from deadly theme park ride crash

Two children were lucky to survive an accident on a river rapids ride which killed their mothers and two others at a popular theme park, police in Australia said on Wednesday. The boy, ten, and a 12-year-old girl were thrown clear as a six-person raft upturned and trapped the adults against the conveyor belt. “In terms of how they escaped, maybe through the providence of God or somebody, but it seems from what I’ve seen almost a miracle that anybody came out of that,” Queensland Police Assistant Commissioner Brian Codd said. “If we’re going to be thankful for anything, I’m thankful for that.”

One (raft) has flipped backward and it has caught and tossed some of the people that were on the ride backward into the conveyor belt

Queensland Police Assistant Commissioner Brian Codd

CCTV footage has shown that the 30-year-old Thunder River Rapids ride at Dreamworld, in the Gold Coast suburb of Coomera, was nearing its end when two rafts collided and one flipped over. Two of those who died have been named as brother and sister, Kate Goodchild, 32, and Luke Dorsett, 35. “I have three children and have lost two of them today - my whole family has been wiped out,” said their mother, Kim Dorsett, of Canberra. The two other victims have been identified as New Zealand ex-pat Roozi Araghi, 38, and his partner 42-year-old Cindy Low, from Sydney.

We do think that in the interests of workers at that facility, but also to the patrons of that facility… it is important there is a full inquiry

Ben Swan, from the Australian Workers Union, responds to claims staff raised serious concerns about equipment at Dreamworld last year

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