Two boys who were injured in a rollercoaster derailment at M&D’s theme park are described by police as being in a serious medical condition.
A 12-year-old suffered chest, abdominal and leg injuries, while an 11-year-old has serious arm and hand injuries.
Five other children and a 19-year-old man are all stable in hospital, while a 19-year-old woman has been released following treatment for a wrist injury.
10 people were hospitalised when the Tsunami rollercoaster derailed at the Scottish park on Sunday afternoon.
It is now understood that the injured consist of the nine people on board the train at the time of its derailment.
A 25-year-old woman who was passing-by was found not to be injured and discharged from hospital.
Images posted online in the aftermath depict wheel assemblies from the ride sheared off from the train body, lying freely on the ground.
‘Parts flying’
The train hit the ground and landed within a cordoned area which contains a coin-operated children’s motorbike ride.
A wheel assembly was seen detached from the train
Eyewitness Amy Thomas said that her three-year-old son was riding one of the motorbikes when the train narrowly missed him.
She told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “We were at the toddlers’ motorbike ride when I heard a crash and it came down.
“All the parts started flying about. He [Dylan] was two feet away from it. My husband ran and grabbed him but I couldn’t move.”
The ride has been cordoned off by the police and Health and Safety Executive (HSE), who are jointly investigating the incident.
Safety checks
M&D’s Douglas Taylor said that every ride within the theme park was subject to safety inspections on a daily basis and underwent a thorough independent inspection every 12 months.
“My brother Matthew and I have been in business together for 50 years and this is the first incident of this type that we have ever been involved in,” he added.
“We are devastated as both a family and a business, and our heart goes out to everyone who has been affected by this accident.”
HSE inspector Barry Baker praised the the work of the emergency services as he announced that an investigation was under way.
“We have brought HSE specialists in mechanical engineering to the site this morning, to begin the process of finding out what caused the gondolas to come off the rails,” he said.
M&D’s said it would remain closed “until further notice”.