A shocking incident at a popular amusement park has led to a lawsuit alleging negligence and unsafe design. On August 1, 2024, Laurie L. Quattrocchi filed a complaint in the Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas against Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company, operating as Hersheypark, and ProSlide Technology Inc.
The case stems from an incident on July 15, 2023, when Quattrocchi visited Hersheypark with her son. While riding the Coastline Plunge — Whirlwind waterslide, manufactured by ProSlide Technology Inc., Quattrocchi suffered a severe concussion after colliding with a water supply pipe inside the slide. According to the complaint, Hersheypark employees allowed Quattrocchi and her son to access the ride without verifying their combined weight—a critical factor in ensuring safe use of the slide. The plaintiff argues that this oversight resulted in excessive momentum that caused her head to strike the pipe forcefully.
The complaint details how the Whirlwind slide's design exacerbated the risk of injury. Riders are meant to traverse curves and tunnels while gaining speed; however, there were no mechanisms in place to slow them down or prevent collisions with internal structures like water supply pipes. "Given the unchangeable nature of the slide’s slope," reads the complaint, "the only factor available to ensure that a rider’s momentum does not become dangerously excessive is the rider’s weight." Quattrocchi asserts that both defendants failed in their duties: Hersheypark for not verifying weights and ProSlide for designing a dangerously flawed ride.
Quattrocchi is seeking damages exceeding $50,000 for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other related costs. She claims ongoing issues such as severe headaches, nausea, sensitivity to light, and mental anguish as direct consequences of her injury. The lawsuit accuses Hersheypark of multiple counts of negligence including failure to instruct employees on safety protocols related to rider weight and momentum. Similarly, ProSlide is accused of negligent design for placing water supply pipes in areas where riders could easily collide with them.
Representing Quattrocchi is attorney Ethan Feldman from Morgan & Morgan PLLC. The case has been assigned Case Number 2024-CV-05233.