Anaheim Police Confirm Death Of Disneyland Visitor During Haunted Mansion Ride

On a day of celebration and Halloween fun at Disneyland, a woman in her 60s had died while on the theme park’s Haunted Mansion Holiday attraction. Anaheim Police Sgt. Matt Sutter said police and paramedics were dispatched to the ride after the woman was discovered not breathing at the end of the attraction. Disneyland security began CPR until Anaheim Fire & Rescue arrived and transported the woman to the hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.

Anaheim police do not suspect the ride’s operation was a factor in the woman’s death. “This appears to be an unfortunate medical episode, and our thoughts go out to the family,” Sutter wrote in an email. Orange County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office is investigating cause of death, which has not yet been ruled. Disneyland also confirmed a guest received medical attention on Oct. 6 and was transported to the hospital. In a statement, Disneyland declined to provide additional information to protect the privacy of the guest and their family.

The news first broke from Disneyland influencer Matt Desmond who shared that the guest had a heart attack on the Haunted Mansion Holiday attraction. In a post, Desmond wrote that the woman was unresponsive as the ride ended. The ride travels at a slow speed of one mile per hour, and is often considered one of the slowest in the park. Dennis Speigel, CEO of International Theme Park Services Inc., told local news outlets that these occurrences are not only extremely rare but the attraction is generally known as a “ride for great-grandmothers.”

The news of the Haunted Mansion tragedy comes just a few weeks after a 32-year-old man died while riding a new ride at Universal Orlando’s Epic Universe. The man was on the new Stardust Racers roller coaster at the time, which opened to the public last month. During a preview event at Universal Orlando Sandi Streets sustained serious injuries and subsequently filed a lawsuit against the park. Although these cases are separate, they all come during an increase in national amusement park scrutiny.