Dollywood’s parent company is cited following an investigation after an employee was injured working on a ride.
The Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration says an employee was helping adjust a belt on the Smoky Mountain River Rampage lift on March 10th and as he tried to hand a tool to another worker, his jacket got caught in a coupling and entangled his arm.
The employee had to be flown to a nearby hospital and the incident prompted TOSHA to visit the park. TOSHA’s investigation resulted in two “serious” citations and a fine against Herschend Family Entertainment, Dollywood’s parent company.
According to the citations, the ride had pulleys that were not guarded as required and shaft couplings were “not constructed as to present no hazard from bolts, nuts, setscrews, or revolving surfaces.” “It was determined that this task commonly requires technicians to work within a foot of an unguarded rotating shaft and that there is room to guard it without interfering with the ride,” TOSHA said in its referral. As a result, Dollywood was fined $3,200 for each citation, a total of $6,400.
