Ontario's public safety regulator has laid 20 charges against the Calypso Theme Waterpark in Limoges, Ont., after a number of incidents involving serious injuries.

The Strelec family lawsuit is one of several legal actions taken against Calypso. Here are four other lawsuits of interest. None of the allegations in the lawsuits have been proven in court. COMPLAINANTS 1. Joanne Davidson of Embrun, Ont. Filed: July 11, 2013 in relation to incident on Aug. 3, 2011 Damages sought: $500,000 plus interest, costs and other relief Lawsuit alleges Davidson was riding the Steamer and was approaching the bottom when her tube flipped and she was ejected and hit her head and neck. She said she suffered a head injury, whiplash, headaches, migraines and other injuries. 2. Francine Cyr of Gatineau, Que. Filed: May 18, 2012 in relation to incident Aug. 2, 2010 Damages sought: $1.5 million in damages, special damages of $250,000, other damages and costs Lawsuit alleges Cyr was thrown from raft on Canyon Rafting ride and collided with another rider, causing several bone fractures, nerve damage and other injuries to her face, as well as depression. The statement of claim alleges Cyr's face is "seriously disfigured" as a result of the accident and that she requires continuous hospital and orthopedic appointments and must take prescription medication. A mediation session between the two parties is scheduled for Aug. 30, 2013. 3. Danielle Marieanne Yelle and Pierre Bernard Yelle of Ottawa Filed: July 21, 2011 in relation to incident on July 11, 2010 Damages claimed: Danielle Yelle claims $750,000, Pierre Yelle an additional $75,000 Lawsuit alleges Yelle was walking to Jungle Run pool when she slipped on wet cement and broke her right arm. Calypso rejects allegation and said in its statement of defence the designated area where patrons access the pool has a non-slip surface. 4. Carolyn Lacelle and Robert Moore of Chesterville, Ont. Filed: Mar. 14, 2011 in relation to incident on Aug. 9, 2010 Damages claimed: For Lacelle, $150,000 for general damages plus damages for past and future loss of income and earning capacity and special damages to be determined. For Moore, $10,000 damages pursuant to the Family Law Act. Lawsuit alleges Lacelle was thrown from double inner-tube while about halfway down waterslide known as the Black Hole, and broke her right clavicle after her arm and shoulder "violently struck" the waterslide.

The charges, relating to incidents that occurred in 2011 and 2012, include not reporting incidents, not having properly trained staff and not having equipment that was properly designed to ensure safety, according to Wilson Lee, a spokesperson for the Technical Standards and Safety Authority.

Lee said the TSSA can't release much detail about the investigation, but Lee added it's one of the most serious prosecutions of an amusement park the TSSA has undertaken.

"What makes these charges so serious is the sheer number of charges," said Lee. "In and of themselves each one of these charges represents a real risk to the riding public who patronize the park, but 20 charges speak for themselves. It's rather voluminous."

Charges involve Steamer, Pirate's Aquaplay and Orange Bobsleigh rides

Fourteen of the charges relate to three separate incidents in 2011 involving the Steamer water slide and Calypso's failure to report and respond to the incidents.

Three charges relate to an incident involving a serious injury on the ride Pirate's Aquaplay on June 27, 2012.

Three charges relate to an incident in which a man fractured his skull on the Orange Bobsleigh ride on June 19, 2012.

The TSSA had earlier this year ordered the park to shut down The Orange Bobsleigh and the Toboggan Alley — two slides on its Summit Tower — after investigating incidents last summer.

Both were reopened this summer after the park added some new measures to improve safety, including adding extra sprinklers to the Orange Bobsleigh and elongating the slow-down zone on both slides.

In a written statement, Calypso lawyer, Lawrence Greenspon, called the charges a "surprising abuse of power."

"All of these allegations have been addressed to ensure the public's safety. They are already the subject of another process with the same Ministry responsible for TSSA," said Greenspon.

Guy Drouin, owner and operator of Calypso, also called the charges "very disappointing," adding he met with the TSSA last month "with no outstanding concerns raised."

But speaking after Calypso had made the changes to the Summit Tower slides earlier this year, president and CEO Guy Drouin said the water park is always looking to make improvements to safety.

"We put everything to be as safe as possible. But as I said we cannot prevent, every, every thing," said Drouin.

Lawsuit after man fractures skull

Calypso also faces a number of legal actions against them, including a $1.325-million lawsuit from the family of Marek Strelec, a contractor from Kanata who fractured his skull in an incident on June 19, 2012.

According to the statement of claim filed in September last year, Strelec was injured when he, his wife and two of his children rode a four-person sliding inflated tube down the orange, 28-metre, bobsled-style slide.

The statement of claim alleges they were permitted down the slide even though the traffic light used to determine when it's safe for the next tube to go down wasn't working properly. The attendant was letting tubes down by guessing at the timing, the statement of claim alleges.

Calypso Theme Waterpark statement on TSSA charges "Calypso management is strongly committed to the safety of its visitors and has always worked diligently with the TSSA to ensure best practices are applied. My staff and I have worked closely with TSSA since these issues were first raised two years ago. That I was meeting with the agency as recently as last month with no outstanding concerns raised and then to have these charges laid is very disappointing. Calypso is recognized as the award-winning world leader in water theme amusement parks and has an enviable record and reputation that it will defend if necessary." Guy Drouin owner and operator of Calypso Theme Waterpark

The family alleges they became stuck three times in the tube, the last time when they got to the flat, open area at the end of the slide. Then they were rammed by a second tube and Marek Strelec was thrown several feet above the side of the slide, landing on his back on the pavement, the claims states.

The family claims a medical professional who was a park customer treated them and that park staff did not immediately call 911.

Marek Strelec suffered a fractured skull, a fractured tail bone, hearing impairment, loss of balance and a possible fracture of his left heel and is seeking $1 million in damages, according to the statement of claim. His wife Adriana is seeking $100,000 and his three children are each seeking $75,000 under the Family Law Act.

Wife said staff slow to help

None of the allegations in the statement of claim have been proven in court.

Adriana Strelec said she was thrown a great distance from the crash and when she saw her husband he was lying and not moving on the cement, with blood pooling around his head.

"It was scary … I didn't know what to do. Basically you have nothing on, you have no phone, you have nothing with you, so what do you do?" she asked.

Adriana Strelec said Calypso staff seemed unprepared for an emergency situation and added that after her husband was transported to hospital, she and her children, all of whom were injured, were only able to get to the first-aid station with the help of other customers.

Court date set for TSSA charges

The Steamer waterslide was named in 14 of the 20 charges laid against the water park. (CBC)

Penalties for the TSSA charges can range from fines of up to $1 million to jail time.

"Typically the penalties are not as serious as that but I think, again, we've never had a prosecution as serious as this one," said Lee.

A court date has been set for Aug. 22.

Lee said safety standards are in place for waterpark operators in particular because the facilities often attract young children in need of extra supervision.

"The TSSA takes the safety of Ontarians seriously and TSSA will enforce those regulations aggressively because these are meant to protect Ontarians and the public," he said.

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