BIG DIPPER WAS CLOSED 'HOURS BEFORE CRASH' ROLLERCOASTER HAD 'PROBLEMS'.

Byline: Donna Watson

FAIRGROUND bosses had to close down a rollercoaster ride hours before a crash left 21 people injured.

The owners of Blackpool Pleasure Beach face massive compensation claims after a car got stuck on the Big Dipper and another slammed into it.

Yesterday, it emerged the ride was shut down earlier that day due to problems the bosses claim were unconnected to the crash.

And six people were rescued from the same ride when it ground to a halt at its height last week.

An investigation is under way after the crash on Tuesday.

Of the 21 people hurt, three were treated in hospital for facial, back and neck injuries.

The other 18 were described as "walking wounded".

Spinal

Staff from legal firms specialising in accident claims followed the injured to hospital and staked out the Pleasure Beach itself.

One said: "If a ride is faulty or malfunctions, there will be personal injury claims reaching into thousands of pounds."

All 32 people on the ride had to be rescued by a specialist rope team using stretchers and spinal boards after the cars stopped 20ft off the ground.

Student Josh Forbes, 17, from Lancaster, had ridden the Big Dipper with pals earlier in the day and was looking for another ride before leaving.

He said: "It was about 4.30pm and we were looking for a ride without a long queue.

"We saw a lot of people coming away from the Big Dipper so we thought we'd try there. We tried to get on but a man told us it was closed becaue of 'problems'. He didn't say what the problems were or when it would reopen."

The crash happened just over three hours later.

Seven days earlier, a party of six had to climb down from the Big Dipper at its height when their car stopped mid-ride.

Council worker Helen Rogers and five pals had just paid pounds 30 a head to get into the Pleasure Beach. Helen, 28, from Liverpool, said: "We had gone up and down and were climbing again when the car just stopped.

"We were stuck there for about 20 minutes when a man climbed up to us. He had to release the safety bars manually and then get us out to walk down the track to safety. It was scary, and now a week later this has happened."

The Big Dipper - which first opened in 1923 and reaches a speed of 35mph - will be closed until investigations are complete.

CAPTION(S):

EMERGENCY: Firefighters help passengers from the ride - a favourite with tourists, right OUT OF ORDER: A row of carriages lie on the track as the investigation into the incident continues. It could end up costing Pleasure Beach bosses thousands