A 23-year-old mother is suing an indoor adventure park after a zipline harness allegedly slipped around her neck, nearly strangling her, at her son’s birthday party, according to an Illinois lawsuit.
“I thought I was going to die,” Evelyn Rapier said of the Nov. 19 incident in a statement provided by her attorney. “All I could think of was my family, friends and especially my young children watching this.”
Rapier was having a birthday party for her 3-year-old son at Urban Air Adventure Park in Bloomingdale — an experience that ultimately left her hurt and traumatized, according to the lawsuit filed against the business and two of its employees. Bloomingdale is a suburb of Chicago.
In a statement to the Chicago Sun Times, Urban Air said the safety of guests and employees is its top priority.
“One injury is one too many, but what’s important to remember is ride safety is a shared partnership between the park and their guests and it’s essential they follow posted and verbal guidelines and instructions,” the statement said.
While riding a zip line, the harness provided by the park somehow came loose and wrapped around Rapier’s throat.
Cell phone video shows Rapier suspended by the harness, swinging and twisting as the ride goes.
While kids cheered and music blasted in the background, Rapier was quietly fighting for her life, she said.
“Thank God I was able to find the strength to pull the harness away from my neck and survive. But a lot of people, especially children would not have been able to do this,” she said in the statement. “I want to let people know this ride is dangerous and that the adventure park and its employees are careless and do not make safety a priority.”
Rapier’s injuries were consistent with strangulation, including a rope burn around her neck, according to a copy of a medical screening provided by her attorney that she underwent the following day.
The lawsuit, filed in DuPage County by the Cavanagh Law Group, alleges that Urban Air did not properly maintain the ride and its equipment, and that the employees operating the zip line failed to correctly secure Rapier in the harness.
“Evelyn, her family and friends were traumatized by this. They went to Urban Air Adventure Park Bloomingdale to celebrate her young son’s birthday and it turned into a nightmare,” Rapier’s attorney, Marc McCallister, said in a statement. “The owners and their employees have a responsibility and duty to maintain the equipment and rides and make sure patrons are properly strapped in. That was not done here. The carelessness and negligence were stunning.”
The lawsuit does not specify how much compensation Rapier is seeking.