We take the safety of our guests at SeaWorld San Antonio very seriously. We believe we have a highly experienced and dedicated operations, maintenance and safety team. The welfare of our guests is on their minds from the minute they walk in the park every morning until they leave at night.
Recently, we caught up with senior maintenance team members Huey "Hutch" Hutchinson and George Hurley, who were using a tool called a dynamic tester, to gauge the limits of Journey to Atlantis through its various lifts and drops. "We verify all electrical readings," said Hutchinson. "This includes pumps and motors, brakes, the lift drive unit and the microphones. In fact, we checked every nut and bolt on this ride before it opened to the public." Hutchinson, a retired Navy quality assurance inspector, brings his experience and eye for detail to his job. But our safety checks didn't stop when the ride opened.
Every day we go through a process we call green-tagging, added Hurley. Green tagging is a daily process in which all operational and safety aspects of the rides are checked and the ride is given the green light to open. It includes testing each ride function according to the specifications set forth by the manufacturer and documenting the inspection results. The process takes eight to nine man-hours on the new Journey to Atlantis ride.Some guests might complain about the number of safety features or restraints that we incorporate into our rides, but everything we do, from checking ride height to double checking lap belts is done with safety in mind.Technical specifications aside, we asked Hurley to describe his first ride on Journey to Atlantis. Hurley said, "The ride is excellent, the backward drop is stomach tingling."
Sounds like fun to us!
