A man allegedly injured after an ill-fated trip down a waterslide at Walt Disney World is suing the theme park giant for $50,000 in damages — even though he was more than 30 pounds over the ride’s weight limit at the time.
In the lawsuit filed last Thursday, Eugene Strickland claims he is still struggling with the aftermath of “catastrophic injuries” he sustained after riding the Downhill Double Dipper at Disney’s Blizzard Beach Waterpark in July 2021.
At the time, Strickland weighed 334 pounds, according to the complaint, which put him just over the ride’s 300-pound limit. It is unclear if he was warned about or aware of the weight limit before going down the slide.
Strickland allegedly “became momentarily airborne” on the waterslide before eventually landing “with force onto the hard plastic surface of the slide” after losing control of the inner tube he was riding in, according to the complaint.
The lawsuit pins blame on the waterslide’s design and “exhilarating speeds,” according to the complaint.
Strickland asserts that he “suffered serious bodily injury and resulting pain and suffering, disability, scarring, disfigurement, mental anguish, [and] loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life” that he still grapples with