WATER SLIDE BREAKS; 1 TEEN DEAD, 32 HURT.

Byline: Michelle Locke Associated Press 

A three-story amusement park water slide collapsed Monday, killing one teen and injuring 32 others, when a group of teen-agers on a graduation outing ignored a lifeguard's warning and tried to go down together, authorities said.

Six suffered life-threatening injuries when a section of the Banzai Pipeline at Waterworld USA broke off as a large group tried to get in one last ride before they had to leave for the day, according to Rick McCurley, vice president of Premier Parks, which owns Waterworld.

The injured, many of whom reportedly were holding hands on the slide, fell about 30 feet, he said.

McCurley said there was an announcement over the park loudspeaker at 3:30 p.m. for the students to return to their buses for the trip home to Napa.

``This incident apparently caused the students to rush our lifeguard on the Banzai Pipeline slide in an attempt to get one last ride in for the afternoon,'' he said. ``The total weight of the 30-odd students on the slide caused the slide to break and the students to fall.''

``It just cracked and gave way,'' said witness Russ Tiberio of San Francisco. ``Crack, snap, gone. That fast.''

``I heard a crash of the slide breaking. There was blood in the water, quite a bit of blood,'' said Mark Fisher, a student at Castro Valley High School who was not part of the group on the damaged slide.

``People who were getting up were in shock. Parents everywhere were running over,'' he added. ``A lot of tears there, people just really shaken up by the whole thing.''

San Francisco radio station KCBS said several students who had returned to Napa told a reporter there were at least 60 students on the slide around the time of the accident trying to break an unofficial school record.

Witnesses said the teens ignored warnings to go down individually. The open slide snapped about 10 feet down, sending teens flying to landscaping, a paved walkway and wood steps.

The water in a holding pool at the bottom turned from blue to red, witnesses said.

The students were seniors from Napa High School visiting as part of graduation festivities. Principal Lars Christensen said a total of 200 seniors graduating June 12 were at the park. He said all those who were not injured were accounted for and have returned home.

``When you attend a function like this - the last thing you think about when you go on a senior picnic is tragedy,'' he said outside Mt. Diablo Medical Center, where the most critically injured students were being treated.

He described the mood of the students and parents as ``shock. I think absolute shock.''

The injured were taken to nine area hospitals by helicopter and ambulance, said Pat Pava, a spokeswoman for the Contra Costa County Office of Emergency Services.

A 17-year-old female, admitted in extremely critical condition at Mt. Diablo with a crushed chest and heart problems, died, said Dave Dyer, a deputy with the Contra Costa County Coroner's Office.

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos

PHOTO (1) Dobbie Smith, left, and an unidentified girl watch rescue efforts after the collapse of the three-story water slide at the Waterworld USA park.

(2) This is an aerial view of the three-story Bonzai Tower water slide in Concord, Calif. ``It just cracked and gave way,'' said witness Russ Tiberio of San Francisco. ``Crack, snap, gone. That fast.''

Associated Press