A mother feared for her teenage daughter’s life when she was hurled from the Rok ‘N’ Rol ride at Sandspit Amusement Park in P.E.I.

Joan Forrest, of Hammonds Plains, Nova Scotia, saw her daughter Leah, 15, being repeatedly struck on the head during a family visit to the theme park on August 12.

“It’s a miracle that she’s ok,” said Joan Forrest, 49.

“Watching the way she was hit by oncoming ride cars, I thought for sure she was getting killed, smashed.”

Forrest’s husband began yelling at the stunned operator to stop the ride, but not before four more carts hit her head and body.

“She landed on her back under the buckets and was dazed. She was trying to get up. She came so close to hitting her head on them again.”

Forrest said her other daughters were screaming and crying because they had actually gone over her body.

“The operator kept saying, ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry,’” Forrest said.

Although her daughter has recovered with minor injuries, Forrest says she remains upset and angry that they didn’t get an apology immediately after the incident.

“They’ve still not apologized. I think it’s horrible,” Forrest said speaking to the Star on Tuesday. “We only went back to find out why it happened.

“I sure didn’t want it to happen to anyone else.”

Matthew Jelley, president of Sandspit Entertainment, did apologize for the incident when contacted by the Star, and said he “certainly intended” his words to the family as an apology.

“When anything like this happens, it upsets us,” he said. “One [accident] is too many.

“I am sorry the incident happened and I’m also sorry she didn’t feel like I was apologizing. I expressed regret it happened and certainly intended that to be an apology.

“I’m thankful the daughter’s injuries appear to be minor. We’re in the business of providing safe, clean family fun. When we don’t, it’s upsetting.”

Accidents at the park are rare, according to Jelley. In his 26 years working at the park, he says an ambulance is called less than once per year on average, and sometimes for heat-related illness, anxiety attacks or severe migraines.

Sandspit have already agreed to implement two suggestions made by the provincial ride inspector in his report after the incident, which Jelley says found no evidence of fault by the operator or any evidence of mechanical failure.

The ride will now be limited to one person per side instead of two. While the inspector didn’t believe this was necessarily related to the accident, he recommended it could help safety.

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Furthermore, the inspector recommended staff note which particular bucket is involved in an incident. Until images were provided, there was confusion over the specific seats where the accident occurred.

Joan Forrest was shocked to hear that the ride was being operated by a young employee who had only been working at the park for three days, a fact Jelley confirmed.

“It was his third day,” Jelley said. “He did go through our staff orientation program. He had been trained on a couple of rides the previous couple of days. He had run the ride before that without incident.

“Our training program does meet regulations, but we’ll continually examine it to make improvements.”

The amusement park trip, an annual family tradition stretching back to Joan Forrest’s childhood, will probably be the family’s last.

“We love Sandspit,” Forrest said. “But no, I don’t see us ever going back there. It was hard to look at it the next day. My stomach turned and my head went. I had to get out.”