Alton Towers Visitors Stuck On Galactica Ride

Thrillseekers at Alton Towers were left dangling from a rollercoaster after it stopped in heavy rain.

In an incident with echoes of the Smiler accident that left five people seriously injured last year, 28 people got stuck on the Galactica ride after it ground to a halt when heavy rain obscured a sensor.

Alton Towers said it took 19 minutes to get 28 people down from the ride after it stopped shortly before 2pm - although some witnesses said they were stuck for between 30 and 40 minutes.

Thomas Symons wrote on Twitter: "So being stuck mid air in the pouring rain on Galactica for 30 minutes was not pleasant.."

Another Twitter user, laylaw, added: "We were stuck at the top of it for 40 minutes! Still shaking!"

Contrary to some reports, the riders were not stuck upside down, a spokesperson for the Staffordshire theme park said.

Alton Towers said in a statement: "Heavy rain obscured a sensor on Galactica which meant that the ride was automatically stopped.

"This is a standard safety feature on this ride and the ride was working exactly as it is designed to do.

"The health and safety of our guests is our number one priority and our team followed standard procedures to get the guests off as quickly and as safely as possible.

"The ride has re-opened."

According to Alton Towers, Galactica is the first fully virtual reality ride to link graphics on headsets with physical twists and turns.

It reopened in March after refurbishment and former International Space Station commander Chris Hadfield was the first person to ride the revamped version of the attraction. 

The 20m-high ride simulates the feeling of flying as it takes riders on a 189-second journey on a virtual space station and through an asteroid field.

Alton Towers bosses have been working to rebuild the park's reputation after the Smiler accident on June 2, 2015, which left teenage passengers Vicky Balch and Leah Washington needing leg amputations after their carriage collided with a stationary car. 

The park's parent firm Merlin, which blamed the crash on human error, is facing a large fine after it admitted breaching health and safety rules over the incident.