Lawmaker's Son Dies on World's Tallest Waterslide

Kansas waterpark shuts down after death of boy, 10
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 8, 2016 1:31 AM CDT
Lawmaker's Son Dies on World's Tallest Waterslide
The ride's name is German for "insane."    (AP Photo/The Kansas City Star, Jill Toyoshiba)

The world's tallest waterslide has been shut down indefinitely while authorities investigate the tragic death of a lawmaker's son. Caleb Thomas Schwab, 10, died Sunday afternoon on the "Verruckt" waterslide at the Schlitterbahn waterpark in Kansas City, Kansas. The boy, son of state Rep. Scott Schwab, was at the park for "Elected Officials Day," a day of fun the park held for lawmakers and their families, the Kansas City Star. Authorities haven't said whether the boy fell from the 168-foot slide, which opened in 2014. "We honestly don't know what’s happened," a park spokeswoman told reporters. "That’s why a full investigation is necessary. We have to understand what’s happened."

State lawmakers say their prayers are with Schwab, a Republican from Olathe. "As we try and mend our home with him no longer with us, we are comforted knowing he believed in his savior, Jesus, and they are forever together now," Schwab said in a statement, per Reuters. "We will see him another day." The slide—which is taller than the Statue of Liberty—sends riders down secured with straps in three-person rafts. It is "safe dangerous" and designed to attract the "thrill-seekers of the world," co-creator and park co-owner Jeff Henry told USA Today after it first opened. According to the park's website, riders are required to be at least 54 inches tall. The park shut down after the boy's death and will remain closed Monday. (More tallest water slide stories.)

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