The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has launched an investigation into what caused the Jurassic Skyline tower to break down.
The attraction remains closed 10 days after the incident.
The tower in Weymouth experienced a mechanical fault on Tuesday, September 5, which left fourteen people, including an 11-month-old baby, trapped for more than six hours before they were winched to safety by a coastguard helicopter.
Operator Merlin Entertainment launched an investigation the day after the incident, and the HSE confirmed yesterday that they are also working with the operator to investigate what caused the fault.
A spokesman said: “HSE is aware of this incident and HSE experts are investigating with the cooperation of the operator.”
HSE is a government regulator which, if necessary, has the power to bring prosecutions.
A spokesman for the tower’s operator, Merlin Entertainment, said they are working to reduce any further incidents and will reopen the tower after the investigation.
He added: “We are undertaking a detailed investigation into the stoppage working with our internal engineering experts, specialist external third parties and the Health and Safety Executive. Jurassic Skyline will reopen following the conclusion of the investigation and any measures to prevent a reoccurance have been implemented. We are sorry for the inconvenience and will provide a further update in due course.”
Calls were made by councillors and business leaders after the incident for lessons to be learned from what happened, and questions asked about what
contingency plans were in place to rescue the trapped visitors.
The Jurassic Skyline tower is one of a number of seaside towers in the UK to break down in the last year.
Brighton’s i360 experienced its eighth break down in March. The tower was closed for more than two days. The tower was also closed in February due to a damaged cable. Passengers were trapped in the tower for more than an hour as a result. The tower was then closed for five days while the damage was fixed.
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