2 Kids Had 'Miracle Escape' in Theme Park Tragedy

They're traumatized but physically unharmed
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 26, 2016 4:31 AM CDT
2 Kids Had 'Miracle Escape' in Theme Park Tragedy
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services personnel are seen at the Thunder River Rapids ride at Dreamworld on Tuesday.   (Dan Peled/AAP via AP)

Two Australian children are traumatized but alive after what authorities are calling a miraculous escape in Tuesday's theme park tragedy. The children, a 10-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl, both saw their mothers die on Thunder River Rapids ride at the Dreamworld park and escaped physically unharmed, the Australian reports. The girl's uncle and his male partner were also killed when the six-person raft crashed and flipped on a conveyor belt. "Maybe through the providence of God or somebody, but it seems from what I've seen almost a miracle that anybody came out of that," a Queensland police spokesman says, per the Guardian. "If we're going to be thankful for anything, I'm thankful for that."

Police are investigating the history of the 30-year-old water ride and they haven't ruled out negligence charges, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. The conveyor belt broke down on Sunday and again on Tuesday morning, and union official Ben Swan says he raised safety concerns with the park 18 months ago and they were ignored. "We owe it to the deceased and their families, we owe it to the community of Queensland to get to the bottom of what caused this, to hold accountable any person that needs to be held accountable for this occurring," Queensland Police Assistant Commissioner Brian Codd says, "but most particularly ensuring that this can never happen again." (More theme park stories.)

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