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| Alton Towers: 80 stuck as monorail breaks down | Alton Towers: 80 stuck as monorail breaks down |
| (about 17 hours later) | |
| Eighty people were stuck for an hour at Alton Towers after two monorail trains broke down on the hottest day of the year. | Eighty people were stuck for an hour at Alton Towers after two monorail trains broke down on the hottest day of the year. |
| The park's Air rollercoaster was also temporarily stopped on Wednesday afternoon, with some people stranded in mid-air for 20 minutes. | The park's Air rollercoaster was also temporarily stopped on Wednesday afternoon, with some people stranded in mid-air for 20 minutes. |
| Alton Towers has now apologised and said the affected monorail train had been removed pending inquiries. | |
| A spokesman said rides and attractions were performing as they should. | |
| "Of course we are very sorry for any inconvenience caused to our guests, and we have apologised to them, but as I'm sure you can appreciate we will not operate a ride if there is any suggestion of a safety compromise," she said. | |
| Two monorail trains stopped at 17:25 BST, leaving people trapped inside. | Two monorail trains stopped at 17:25 BST, leaving people trapped inside. |
| Alton Towers said a sensor was activated on one train that caused it to stop and then a second train travelling behind it was automatically shut down by the system. | |
| It took an hour to walk 80 people off the monorail using the evacuation walkways, the park said. | It took an hour to walk 80 people off the monorail using the evacuation walkways, the park said. |
| "The train drivers kept guests informed via the onboard PA system and refreshments were provided," an Alton Towers spokesman said. | |
| Guests stuck on the Air ride were cleared "within standard operating procedures", according to park bosses. No injuries have been reported. | Guests stuck on the Air ride were cleared "within standard operating procedures", according to park bosses. No injuries have been reported. |
| Visitors waiting to go on the ride took to Twitter to say people had been left "stranded" on the Air rollercoaster. | |
| It comes after 16 people were hurt when the Smiler rollercoaster crashed into an empty carriage at the theme park last month. | |
| The park had previously said it would introduce stricter safety procedures in the wake of the crash. | |
| Two women, 20-year-old Vicky Balch and 17-year-old Leah Washington, underwent leg amputations following the crash on 2 June. | Two women, 20-year-old Vicky Balch and 17-year-old Leah Washington, underwent leg amputations following the crash on 2 June. |
| On Wednesday Ms Balch, from Lancashire, tweeted a photo of her meeting Maj Kate Philp, from Knightwick in Worcestershire, who lost her left leg as the result of a bomb blast. | |
| She wrote: "Today I was inspired by a very amazing woman Major Kate Philp and I hope one day I can do the same for somebody else." | She wrote: "Today I was inspired by a very amazing woman Major Kate Philp and I hope one day I can do the same for somebody else." |