ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Orange County Fire Rescue has released the emergency call from inside Epic Universe after a 32-year-old man was found unresponsive on a roller coaster.
The medical examiner said Kevin Rodriguez Zavala died of “blunt impact injuries” after riding Stardust Racers.
That ride was temporarily closed down but has since reopened.
Since Rodriguez Zavala’s death on September 17th, information about what happened on the ride has slowly trickled in.
The Orange County Medical Examiner said his death was an “accident” caused by “blunt impact injuries,” but the office won’t release the full autopsy report until the sheriff’s investigation is wrapped.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday that the death investigation is still active and ongoing.
However, the newly released call details that Rodriguez Zavala was bleeding profusely from his head.
“I have a guest on our ride vehicle. It was called in as a head laceration, heavy bleeding. Our health service units aren’t quite on scene yet,” said the caller.
According to a report obtained by Channel 9, that call to Orange County Fire Rescue came in just after 9:09 pm on September 17th.
Security at Epic Universe escorted the ambulance in.
An Orange County Fire Rescue incident report shows fire rescue parked their ambulance 750 feet away from Stardust Racers at 9:15 pm and rushed toward Rodriguez Zavala.
“Based on what I see on video, they do not look to be responsive, and the attraction’s team members have connected the AED,” said the caller.
According to Fire Rescue, when crews got to Stardust Racers, two Universal Paramedics were holding Rodriguez Zavala in one of the seats of the ride. The restraint bar was still on him, and an AED medical device was attached, but he was already pulseless.
Less than three weeks after Rodriguez Zavala’s death, the ride has reopened.
Universal Orlando Resort’ President told employees they completed a technical and operational review of the ride and even hired a third-party engineer who ultimately found the “ride systems functioned properly.”
According to Universal, state officials also “observed the testing and reviewed the results.”
However, pursuant to state law, because Universal Orlando Resort has more than 1,000 employees and full-time inspectors on staff, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services does not directly inspect the ride.
On Monday, Channel 9 asked Florida’s Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins how much oversight the state should have in investigations like this.
“For the most part, yes, I want the government out of businesses’ lives. I do. But if they’re not doing the right thing and they can’t get accountability, then I think there’s ways that, you know, the government can do this without overstepping,” said Collins, “ I think there’s a marshaled and metered approach to doing that.”
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