Gabrielle Russon
A St. Johns County man said he was stuck tilted backward in the air for an hour on a Harry Potter ride.
A Duval County woman said she got hurt during a collision on Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls.
The two tourists both sued Universal this week in Orange Circuit Court over the incidents.
Neither the two attorneys representing the two unrelated lawsuits nor Universal responded to a request for comment Friday from Florida Politics.
On board Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, Casey Causey’s lawsuit said the ride ‘came to an abrupt stop, stranding their cart midair at an angle that left him tilted backward and to the right.”
Causey’s complaint accused Universal of being aware of similar issues with the ride inside Hogwarts Castle and failing to fix it or shut the ride down.
The alleged incident happened July 2, 2023 which would have been over the busy summer holiday season.
Meanwhile Christy Johnson sued over an incident she said happened Sept. 16, 2024 on a ride described as “part roller coaster, part water flume” at Universal’s Islands of Adventure
“As Plaintiff was seated and riding on the Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls Ride, a malfunction occurred, causing the attraction seating carts to immediately collide,” her lawsuit said. “The Plaintiff was strongly hit from behind while seated in her own cart from the cart behind her.”
Both lawsuits claimed the the passengers suffered injuries although the complaints does not detail them.
Neither incident was listed on the state theme park injury report where the major theme parks self-report guests hurt or sick on rides if they were hospitalized for at least 24 hours.
Every year, a few dozen incidents are self-reported by the theme parks as millions of people visit Orlando’s theme parks.
Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls opened in 1999 while Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey debuted in 2010 at the park.
