Water slides exempt from state inspections; city says Cape Splash slides safe

Missouri’s water slides are exempt from state inspections, a spokesman for the Missouri Department of Public Safety said Wednesday.

Even without such inspections, the slides at Cape Splash water park in Cape Girardeau are safe to use, city officials said.

Missouri’s public-safety department’s division of fire safety inspects amusement rides, including any dry slide over 20 feet in height, said Mike O’Connell, communications director for the department. But he said state law excludes water slides.

The safety of water slides has drawn public scrutiny after a 10-year-old boy was decapitated while riding on the world’s tallest water slide in Kansas City, Kansas.

The cause of the incident remains under investigation.

A youngster goes down a water slide Wednesday at Cape Splash.Fred Lynch

O’Connell declined to comment on the incident, saying it would be inappropriate to address a situation in another state.

According to Missouri statute, amusement rides include “any mechanical device that carries or conveys passengers along, around or over a fixed or restricted route or course or within a defined area.”

Bungee-cord attractions and any climbing wall over 10 feet, except those belonging to not-for-profit entities that follow certain guidelines, also are subject to inspection.

O’Connell said the state has been inspecting amusement rides since 1997. A water slide, where “gravity is pulling you down,” doesn’t qualify as an amusement ride, O’Connell said.

Any owner of an amusement ride wishing to operate in Missouri must provide documentation to the fire-safety division that each ride has passed a safety inspection by a state-approved inspector within the last 12 months.

In addition to the annual inspections by third-party contractors, state inspectors make spot checks of amusement rides, including carnival rides, O’Connell said.

As for water slides, O’Connell said the public safety department has no record of how many such slides are operating in the state or how safe they are.

But Cape Girardeau city parks and recreation staff insist the Cape Splash water slides operate safely. Patrick Watson, aquatics supervisor said, “We inspect them on a regular basis.”

The Cape Splash lifeguards are trained in the safe use of the slides, he said.

“We have staff on site at each one of our slides,” Watson said.

Watson said the slides receive seasonal maintenance to ensure they are in proper shape.

The 3.5-acre Cape Splash water park has eight water slides, including five larger slides installed last year by KCI Construction Co.

The entire project cost about $1.3 million, funded with restaurant sales-tax revenue.

The cost included the slides, manufactured by Whitewater West Industries, and purchased for $730,000, city records show.

According to Whitewater’s website, the company is a major manufacturer of water features, including slides.

Cape Splash’s large slides include a three-lane mat racer that is 319 feet long and has a 30-foot-tall tower; a 265-foot-long, partially enclosed slide; and a 259-foot triple-drop slide.

Watson said the slides at Cape Splash don’t compare to the one in Kansas. Cape Girardeau’s water slides don’t have rafts. The massive slide at Schlitterbahn WaterPark in Kansas required two to three riders to be strapped in a raft with a total weight between 400 and 500 pounds.

“We are nowhere like Kansas,” Watson said.

“This is a municipal, aquatic center. It is good for families,” he said.

“That is not to say that the speed slides don’t have thrills to it,” Watson said. But he said the water park is designed to provide “safety first, then fun.”

Watson said the water slides are safe for users as long as “children and parents follow the rules.”

The city has minimum-height requirements, ranging from 42 to 48 inches, for those wanting to use the slides. Watson said the height restrictions are determined from “an engineering standpoint.”

The slides are engineered to handle riders safely who meet the height requirements, he said.

Parks and recreation director Julia Thompson said the new slides were tested last year to ensure they were operating properly before they were opened to the general public.

“Safety is a big deal,” she said. “That is the No. 1 concern.”

The aquatic staff works to make sure the park operates safely for everyone, she said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641

Pertinent address:

1565 N. Kingshighway, Cape Girardeau, Mo.