This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

A Dreamworld staff member claimed she’d been told not to “worry about” an emergency stop button for the ride on which four guests died in October 2016.

An inquest into the tragedy at the Gold Coast theme park began on Monday, with the Southport coroners court hearing staff were confused by the ride’s controls.

Cindy Low, Kate Goodchild, her brother Luke Dorsett and his partner Roozi Araghi died instantly after being flipped from a raft when the Thunder River Rapids ride malfunctioned.

Barrister Steven Whybrow, representing victims Kate Goodchild and Luke Dorsett, said an emergency stop button was not clearly labelled and a staff member was unaware of its exact function.

Dreamworld nightmare overshadows theme park reopening Read more

“She was told not to worry about that button, no one uses it?” Whybrow asked lead police investigator Detective Sergeant Nicola Brown.

“Yes,” Det Sgt Brown replied.

Whybrow added that a memo sent to staff in the days before the tragedy had dissuaded staff from using the emergency button.

The inquest heard the main control panel for the ride also did not have an emergency switch which would shut down the ride, with a second switch needing to be used to halt the ride’s conveyor belt.

“It is a confusing control panel, and that has been raised by the auditors,” Brown said.

The inquest heard the ride operator at the control panel when the tragedy occurred “wasn’t sure which button to press” under the stress.

Brown said an automatic sensor to shut down the ride if water levels dropped to a dangerous level would have prevented the tragedy.

“We’re talking about human beings ... it was a human being that has to stop it,” she said.

Earlier on Monday counsel assisting Ken Fleming QC revealed the ride had a history of malfunctions and detailed several other incidents.



Fleming said one incident, in January 2001, had resulted in several empty rafts colliding at the unloading point of the ride.

“I shudder when I think if there had been guests on that ride,” said Fleming, quoting an email between Dreamworld staff after the 2001 incident.



The incident was disturbingly similar to the fatal one in 2016 during which a water pump on the ride stopped working, causing water levels to drop below the railing where the rafts sat.

When the raft containing the four victims, as well as two children, collided with another raft, it flipped over and dropped them into the conveyor system.

Dreamworld inquest: court hears of victims' last moments Read more

All four victims were killed instantly from compressive and crushing injuries.



Goodchild’s 12-year-old daughter and Low’s 10-year-old son survived the incident.



Fleming said the tragedy had been “felt Australia-wide” and the main aim of the inquest was to prevent any similar tragedies from happening again.



The families have sought answers and relatives of Low have said how they hoped the probe would prevent others from suffering “such enormous heartbreak”.



Dreamworld suffered steep falls in visitor numbers following the fatal accident and the park’s subsequent 45-day shutdown.



Before Monday’s inquest, several hearings were held and attended by lawyers for the four victims; Dreamworld chief executive, Craig Davidson; Dreamworld’s parent company, Ardent Leisure; and the Office of Industrial Relations.



The inquest continues.