On 7/5/9 at 2:00am tragedy struck the the Happiest Place on Earth. A fatal Monorail crash took the life of Cast Member & Pilot Austin Wuennenberg, 21. Austin was a computer Science Major at Stetson University, Class of 2010, and a graduate of Celebration High School..
Below is a link that will provide the story as well as videos on Austin (pictured on the monorail) and on the crash itself. There is also raw footage of the incident immediately after it happened.
The Story
The sites right now are going crazy with blaming this and that for the tragedy, but one simple fact remains. No amount of blame will give this family back its son. I am certain that Disney will take all steps necessary in the investigation to find the actual cause of the problem. I am as secure riding on the monorail today as I was the last time I was at Disney. Millions of people a year are transported via the Monorail system. 4 incidents and only one fatality (please do not think I am down-playing Austin Wuennenberg's death. It is a tragic loss) in 38 years is an amazing record. I wish our planes, trains and automobiles had as good a safety record.
While I do not think that the cast members at the TTC handled the situation in an appropriate manner, As a Specialist in Emergency Management Planning, as well as a Disney Shareholder, there are several things I saw in the raw footage that could have been done better. I do not fault Disney for this accident, nor do I feel that the actions of all around after the accident (yes, this also includes the guests - particularly the one who had nothing better to do but shoot footage most likely in the hopes of obtaining his 15 minutes of fame) would have done much to change the outcome of this scenario. This was after all exactly that - A very tragic accident.
On Twitter we have started a Memorial to Austin all tweets contain the #Austin. If you tweet please add it in his memory - We are working to get him listed as a trending topic.
I would like to add this note: While I feel great sadness at the loss of this young life, I am more deeply saddened by the lack of actions of those around. I know that in the midst of unexpected tragedy, people are in shock, but when you can do nothing more than stand there and video tape the scene there is something more tragically wrong with you. This is a disheartening statement on society today.
My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends and co-workers. We need to worry not about blaming but about healing.
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