Big Thunder Mountain

First published September 16, 2003

By C. W. Oberleitner

In the first in an occasional series of updates about the events surrounding the tragic accident on Big Thunder Mountain rollercoaster, C. W. Oberleitner speaks with the Anaheim Police Department's public information officer, Sgt. Rick Martinez, and gets some answers about what happened at Disneyland on September 5.

For the past year it has been my pleasure to be part of the team here at JimHillMedia providing fans of the Walt Disney Company, animation, and pop-culture events with a series of what I hoped were informative and entertaining behind the scenes stories. JimHillMedia is not and does not presume to be a news site. We like to think that we fill a niche on the Internet between fan sites and huge corporate entertainment media sites like E! Online and MSN Access Hollywood.

Bringing you these stories has been hard work and it has been fun. I've met some fascinating people and have learned some valuable lessons about human nature along the way. All of that came to a screeching halt Friday September 5, when it was learned that there had been a death on Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain rollercoaster. Suddenly stories about the backstories of the comings and goings of the people who supply the world with entertainment didn't seem to be quite so important.

Like many of us here at JimHillMedia I have been following the discussions about The Big Thunder Mountain accident on the various discussion boards, including our own, around the Internet. As you might expect in the post Paul Pressler era the debate about who or what may have caused the accident that claimed the life of 22 year old Marcelo Torres and injured ten of his fellow passengers has been lively to say the least.

Because JHM lacks the resources to be a dedicated instant news site Jim has decided that we should do what we do best. That is to talk with authoritative people, both directly and indirectly involved with the investigation. To that end, last Friday I spoke by telephone with the public information officer of the Anaheim Police Department, Sgt. Rick Martinez.

I asked Sgt. Martinez to describe how and why the Anaheim Police Department becomes involved with a theme park accident. Sgt. Martinez said any accident that results in death or serious injury local law enforcement authorities must investigate under California law.

"We're (APD) a little different from most cities because we have a big theme park here." Sgt. Martinez said.

"Was there anything criminal involved?" Sgt. Martinez said when I asked him what questions the law required the police department to answer. He went on to say that it is their responsibility to determine if the accident was the result of negligence on the part of an employee, the result of a guest from another train throwing something on the tracks or any other activity that may have resulted in the accident.

According to Sgt. Martinez this is an ongoing criminal investigation. The case is, "still open and will be for several months." The reason for this is the Anaheim Police Department's reliance on the state's Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH). "We (APD) will rely on them before making a determination." Said Sgt. Martinez. He went on to say that DOSH is better equipped to handle the investigation into the cause of the accident. Once their findings are complete the APD will better be able to determine responsibility, if any, for the accident.

When I asked Sgt. Martinez about reports in the media about possible maintenance cut backs at the Disneyland Resort being a contributing factor to the accident he told me that to his knowledge, "nobody has suggested anything like that." Even if they had he would not be at liberty to say, however, he went on to say, "at this point nothing suggests anything other than an accident."

I asked Sgt. Martinez -- who was in the field and not his office at the time of our conversation -- if the same law that requires local law enforcement to investigate such accidents also requires businesses like the Disneyland Resort to immediately report them. "I'm not sure." He said.

Sgt. Martinez quickly pointed out that in this case it would not have mattered. Referring to previous accidents at the Disneyland Resort where there were delays in informing the authorities Sgt. Martinez said,

"The system is now working properly as it should be." Again, because he was not in his office Sgt. Martinez could not give me the exact time the calls came in. He was, however, able to tell me, "We were notified within 15 minutes."

"We got calls from both officers on the ground and 911 calls from passengers on the train. Disney notified the Anaheim Fire Department directly via telephone."

I asked Sgt. Martinez -- who was not familiar with the JHM website prior to my call -- if in his capacity as public information officer he was familiar with any of the other unofficial Disney related fan sites. Specifically I asked if he was familiar with MiceAge.com and its web master Al Lutz. He told me he knew of MiceAge and was a frequent reader of Al's columns. I then asked if he had read Al's MiceAge column from that morning, Why Did They Shred Documents? He told me that he had not.

Sgt. Martinez listened attentively while I read the opening paragraphs of Mr. Lutz column in which he accuses "higher ups" at the Disneyland Resort of a "bunker mentality" and a return to "what appears to be a repeat of the behavior seen during the Columbia incident…" Mr. Lutz went on to say, "it appears that many documents were removed from the limited access areas (at DLR offices) and were shredded two days ago."

Sgt. Martinez said he knew nothing about this and did not know whether the officers involved with the investigation knew anything about it either. "I don't think its fair to report this sort of thing until we know exactly what they (the documents) are." He said.

Sgt. Martinez went on to explain that shredding is not an uncommon practice in businesses and homes everywhere. He told me no business, including the Anaheim PD, wants to be responsible for throwing out information that might be used in identity theft. For that reason alone companies all over the country shred thousands of tons of paper a day. He repeated that it was irresponsible to accuse Disney of doing anything wrong without knowing exactly what was in those documents.

As to the attitude of Disneyland Resort Management towards the investigation Sgt. Martinez had this to say. "The Disneyland Resort is very cooperative and helpful (with the investigation). They have gone above and beyond…" what is required of them.

That concluded my interview with Sgt. Rick Martinez of the Anaheim Police Department. I want to thank both Sgt. Martinez and the Anaheim PD for making it possible to bring this information to the readers of JimHillMedia.

Feel free to discuss this article and any other aspect of the Big Thunder Mountain accident on our discussion boards. We ask only that you keep the debate civil and try to keep your arguments to the known facts. If an accusation or accusations appear on our boards -- or any place else on the Internet -- that you do not believe are supported by the facts please inform either Jim or myself. I assure you we will do everything that we can to provide you with the most accurate information available.

C'ya real soon!