There were 'only' six deaths

Many urban legends have sprung up around Action Park, along with stories of more deaths that went unreported or were covered up, but let's count the official ones. The first was on the Alpine Slide in 1980, when a 19-year-old employee hit his head on a rock after his cart jumped the track. The second and third came in 1982. First was the drowning death of a 15-year-old boy in the wave pool, and it was only a week later that a 27-year-old man was electrocuted on The Kayak Experience. There was a massive investigation after he was tipped out of his boat and touched an exposed wire. Number four was the 1984 death on the Tarzan Swing, and five and six were 1984 and 1987 drowning deaths in the wave pool.

Average emergency room visits

Six deaths is a high enough number, but when you start talking about injuries and emergency room visits, you get way beyond being able to count on your fingers and toes. The official injury total for 1985 was 110, a number that includes 45 head injuries and 10 broken bones. And those are just the ones severe enough to be reported. It is said local emergency rooms estimated between five and 10 park guests a day ended their fun adventure by sitting in the hospital, and that ambulances were making so many trips to Action Park that the park paid to put a few more on call.

It was an underage free-for-all

On May 21, 1986, a report exposed many more ugly truths about the park. Even though operation manager Adam Ringler went on record to deny there were any underage people working at the park, about a dozen 14 and 15-year-olds were tracked who said they were operating rides and giving out medical attention whenever it was needed. Another big problem was underage drinking. Visitors and employees alike, were allowed to drink freely, and an overwhelming number of injuries happened to people who'd had a little too much liquid consumption.