Despite calls to tear down the drop tower at ICON Park where a 14-year-old boy died in March, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried said Wednesday she could not commit to action of any kind until her agency completes its investigation.
“We have to follow the law and the statutes, and so that’s why we’re doing a complete investigation on the company, on the rides themselves,” she said. “… [Based on the results], we’ll have to make a determination based on what I have the power to do.”
Just yards away from the attraction, Fried participated in a community forum on the future of the Orlando Free Fall ride hosted by state Sen. Randolph Bracy, D-Ocoee, at ICON Park.
She did not provide an update in the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ investigation into Tyre Sampson’s death.
The teen was visiting from St. Louis when he slipped out of his seat on the drop tower. His recent autopsy report confirmed he weighed almost 100 pounds over the ride manufacturer’s weight limit for the over 36-story drop.
According to the investigation’s latest public update from mid-April, an engineering firm found proximity sensors on two of the ride’s restraints had been tampered with, allowing the harnesses on those seats to open to almost double their normal range. Tyre reportedly sat in one of those seats.
That was the investigation’s first stage, Fried said, and now the department is conducting “a full analysis of the ride.” She did not say when the probe might end.
Bracy, who requested Fried’s agency permanently close the Orlando Free Fall in March, said he asked Fried to “shut down” the SlingShot Group, which owns the Free Fall, because of past incidents involving the company’s attractions.
Two workers, Justin Honeycutt and Jacob Kaminsky, fell from the company’s StarFlyer attraction in 2011 and 2020, respectively, he said. Two teens were rescued uninjured from another SlingShot Group attraction, the Old Town SlingShot in Kissimmee, in March 2021 after one of its cables broke.
“They’ve exhausted their opportunity to be in Central Florida,” Bracy said.
SlingShot Group attorney Trevor Arnold said Monday the company hopes to reopen its other ride at ICON Park, the Orlando SlingShot, with state approval. In the same statement, he said the company prioritizes guest safety and would support updated ride safety legislation.
Spokespeople for the SlingShot Group referred to the same statement Wednesday and declined to comment further.
ICON Park did not respond to questions Wednesday.
Fried said the judge hearing the lawsuit on Tyre’s death filed by his family is responsible for establishing negligence in the case, but her agency is doing everything within its power to hold those responsible accountable.
“My job is as a regulator and to oversee the process,” she said. “And of course, if this company is deemed to have been negligent, then we have certain power.”
During the discussion, community members expressed concerns that Tyre’s death would be forgotten, especially after the SlingShot Group removed a memorial to him at the site in late May. The company removed the flowers, signs, footballs and other items after consulting with Tyre’s family and ICON Park and saved its contents for Tyre’s relatives, Arnold said at the time.
Fried vowed to keep Tyre’s memory alive.
“As long as I am in this position, no one’s going to forget,” she said. “And we are going to continuously make sure that the memory is uplifted and his life is still celebrated.”
The discussion occurred two days after Tyre’s father, Yarnell Sampson, said he felt his son’s death was being swept “under the rug” by the SlingShot Group, ICON Park and unnamed executives.
He wants the ride to be taken down and a permanent memorial to Tyre be established at the site.
Orlando resident Rashon Young said he attended the forum to let Fried, Bracy and the Legislature know that the community wants answers.
“This company has a track record of being negligent in their practices, and we don’t want them here anymore,” he said of the SlingShot Group.
Young, 24, said he understood Fried was limited in talking about the ongoing investigation. Still, he wants her and the Legislature to commit to closing the SlingShot Group’s rides and honoring Tyre.
The removal of Tyre’s memorial adds insult to injury, he added.
“The appearance is that people that look like me don’t matter,” said Young, who is Black, as Tyre was. “… They are trying to wipe the history of what happened here.”
A tourist from North Carolina agreed the tower should probably go.
“I don’t think a parent should have to have that type of large monument to remind them of their child’s death,” said Febra Miles, of Fayetteville, N.C. “And if they don’t do that, just be very strict about how they allow people to get on the ride.”
krice@orlandosentinel.com and @katievrice on Twitter
