After an investigation, authorities arrested Rogel Hernandez-Reyes, a 27-year-old man from Maryland. Merlin Entertainments said the ride. I had to think about the help Id need, even at the end of my life. She captioned apicture of the pair: ''Can't believe my best friend asked me to marry him on Friday. "I didnt think it would be as hard as it is. Anna Wiseman, Senior Associate at Stewarts who represented Vicky Balch in the legal claim said: No amount of money will ever be able to replace what Vicky has lost. Joe says: We had the attitude of were alive, but our parents told us we needed the money to set us up for the future., And on learning that his claim has been settled for a confidential amount of at least six figures, he said: Its a huge weight lifted off my shoulders, a lot of stress has been taken away and it feels like I can finally move on and get on with my life.. Another Twitter user posted a video appearing to show a third air ambulance arriving at the amusement park. Vicky said: I dont think Im ever going to get real closure. She was sat in the front carriage when the crash happened and was rushed in to surgery where doctors had to amputate her right leg. The Alton Towers spokeswoman said a full investigation would take place into the accident. The harrowing story behind Alton Towers Smiler crash five years on He . Leah Washington said:Merlin have looked after me and my family so well! Miss Balch has said she does not see the point in being angry about what happened. Putting names to archive photos, The children left behind in Cuba's mass exodus, In photos: India's disappearing single-screen cinemas. Blood everywhere. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. Jamie Bamber plays Archie Hughes in Beyond Paradise on BBC One. Miss Balch, of Leyland, Lancashire, and Miss Washington, from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, needed partial leg amputations after the crash. Victims who lost limbs, broke bones and suffered internal injuries in the disaster relieved their ordeal as they faced the theme park's bosses at Stafford Crown Court today. When is Eurovision and how do you get tickets? The 18m Smiler ride, described as the worlds first 14-looping rollercoaster on its official website, opened in May 2013. Alton Towers Smiler ride crash caused by human error, theme park says Some of the passengers sustained life-changing injuries. Leah Washington (left) and Vicky Balch were both badly injured on the ride. Latest news and stories from the West Midlands, "catastrophic failure and a "needless and avoidable accident in which those who were injured were lucky not to be killed.". ", Cash machine fraudsters target Staffordshire banks, Cold weather warning for possible snow showers, Man jailed following fatal hit and run which killed 'devoted mother' in Crewe, Council working on new tree planting policy amid claims existing rules preventing highways planting, Major bus operator announces it will 'step in and cover' Arriva services, China looks at reforms to deepen Xi's control, Street fighting in Bakhmut but Russia not in control, Inside the enclave surrounded by pro-Russia forces, 'The nurses wanted me to feel guilty about my abortion, From Afghan TV fame to a US factory floor. The grainy CCTV clip shows the ride smashing into an empty carriage with the same forceas a 90mph car crash. Witnesses posted pictures of the aftermath of the collision as people were evacuated from the rollercoaster. The documentary also features 57-year-old security worker Ivan Martin who battled to receive compensation from West Midlands Police for twice being wrongly arrested. Both have been undergoing rehabilitation for their injuries. Two women who lost legs after a crash on a ride at Alton Towers are suing the park's owners, their lawyers have said. But Leah, from Barnsley, South Yorks., says she is still waiting for final damages to be paid out. Merlin Entertainments said the ride would reopen next year after being closed since the crash in June. Lawyer Paul Paxton said: "Our clients suffered life-changing injuries as a result of the accident. Vicky and Dino, who got engaged in December 2018 after a year of dating, had originally planned to tie the knot inFlorence in September last year, however they had to put their nuptials on hold following the ongoing pandemic. Murdaugh is heckled as he leaves court, Missing hiker buried under snow forces arm out to wave to helicopter, Ukraine soldiers shoot down enemy drones with drones of their own, Fleet-footed cop chases an offender riding a scooter, Mark Gordon arrives at Crawley Police Station after remains found, Two Russian tanks annihilated with bombs by Ukrainian armed forces, Isabel Oakeshott clashes with Nick Robinson over Hancock texts, Insane moment river of rocks falls onto Malibu Canyon in CA. Her parents had to move house to a bungalow with wheelchair access and she needs physiotherapy and prosthetic legs. Joe suffered shattered kneecaps in the accident. Read about our approach to external linking. ', Fleet of buses enters Mariupol to evacuate citizens, Aftermath: These are the damaged Smiler carriages, which show how the ride buckled with the force of the collision, Shocking past: The major crash on the Smiler in June 2015 (pictured) in which five people were seriously injured, Rescue: The victims were stuck for up to four hours, some were left unconscious by the crash and lost significant amounts of blood. The payout is earmarked for a lifetime of physio, treatment and prosthetics. An arctic maritime airmass will sweep across the UK from Monday, Harry Potter star supports JK Rowling and wishes people would 'just listen', Evanna Lynch, who is best known for her role as Luna Lovegood in Harry Potter, has defended the author JK Rowling following her controversial comments in 2020, National Lottery results draw LIVE: Winning Lotto numbers on Saturday, March 4, Child Benefit payments to increase from next month - here are the new weekly rates and all the details. Leah Washington and her boyfriend Joe . "The students involved further wish to apologise unreservedly to those affected by the Smiler incident for any offence or distress they may have unwittingly caused.". It has been closed twice before because of technical issues. Merlin Attractions Operations Ltd, which owns and operates the Alton Towers theme park, previously admitted a breach of health and safety rules over the incident. Joe Pugh, 18, a student at Huddersfield University, and his girlfriend Leah Washington were among the victims. He said settlements relied on receiving certain information from claimants, and Merlin had "provided appropriate support including interim payments while the assessments continue". A VICTIM of the Alton Towers rollercoaster crash told how she's living in agony and has been left constantly aching two years on from losing a leg in the smash. I wanted to take her mind away from the case and put it in a nice place wedding prep and marriage. The Smiler reopened in March this year with 'improved safety measures' but student Miss Balch said she hoped the ride would 'be destroyed'. We are confident that lessons have been learned and that appropriate action has been taken to address all the issues raised by our investigation and we believe our core conclusions will be in line with the HSE findings., Paul Paxton, a partner at the law firm Stewarts Law, which is acting for Pugh, Washington and Balch, said it was too early to comment until the conclusion of the HSE investigation. The footage published for the first time today shows the Smiler stop at the top of a loop before bungling Alton Towers engineers overrode a system warning and sent it headlong into another truck on June 2 last year. 'A number of errors were made. Some people said they had experienced problems on the ride just hours before the crash. When the wedding was put off last year, the couplestarted trying for a baby, andthree months after coming off the pill they conceived. Now Jeremy Hunt must give us a Budget to boost Britain, Leicester 'explosion': Listen to massive 'sonic' boom that shook homes and rattled windows. Four ambulances and four air ambulances attended the scene among 40 emergency vehicles in total after receiving a 999 call at 2.09pm. Chandaben Chauhan (right) suffered internal injuries after being on a girls day out with her two daughters, one of whom accompanied her to court today, Entourage: The large legal team representing Alton Towers' owners Merlin file into Stafford Crown Court this morning. Stock in the FTSE-100 firm dropped 3.46% to 444.3p a share. What's the least amount of exercise we can get away with? Theme park owner Merlin admitted breaching the Health and Safety Act and was fined 5m in September 2016. The Staffordshire theme park owner has already admitted breaching the Health and Safety Act, and was fined 5m in September 2016. It concluded that the defendant, Merlin, fell 'far short' when it came to governing the inevitable need for engineers from the park's technical service's department to fix faults on the ride. For other inquiries, Contact Us. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, Leah was on a date with boyfriend Joe Pugh, 18, when the accident happened, The teen's left leg was so badly crushed doctors amputated it below the knee, Those on the ride suffered injuries all over their bodies - here a badly cut finger is stitched up, A bloodied finger is pictured here as victims suffered horrific injuries in the crash, Leah's leg was left badly crushed and doctors were forced to amputate below the knee, Leah was speaking to Channel 5's documentary Where Theres Blame, Theres a Claim, Merlin Attractions Operations Ltd, which owns Alton Towers, reopened the Smiler rollercoaster after several months despite the horrific incident, Brave Leah said: 'I didnt think it would be as hard as it is. Leigh Curtis, who was sitting in a nearby bar when the accident happened, described quite an eerie feel in the aftermath of the collision. Ive got my wedding dress. Vicky had to answer distressing questions such as how many children she hoped to have and how the injury would affect her life as part of the process. The Smiler ride at Alton Towers Read More Related Articles. The women are suing Merlin Attractions Operations Ltd for negligence and or breach of statutory duty. Alton Towers Smiler Victims Pictured Together For The First Time Since Crash; Modern World Driving Children to Despair. Alton Towers operator Merlin was fined 5m after admitting . Giving an example of the idiosyncratic approach, Mr Thorogood said one engineer who worked on the Smiler that day told investigators after the crash that he had 'assumed' the rollercoaster had been fitted with a type of safety trip-switch present on at least one other park ride, when in fact it had not. Judge Michael Chambers QC said the crash on the 18m attraction was a "catastrophic failure and a "needless and avoidable accident in which those who were injured were lucky not to be killed.". Alton Towers amputee Vicky Balch has married her fiance in an 'emotional' ceremony six years after she lost her leg in a horrific accident on the theme park's Smiler ride. Alton Towers operator Merlin has been fined 5m for the crash on the Smiler rollercoaster. Others hurt included Vicky Balch, 20, from Lancashire, who had six rounds of surgery in a bid to save her leg before needing an amputation. Vicky Balch, then 19, and Leah Washington, then 17, were. Emergency services eventually rescued 16 people trapped on the rollercoaster at a 45-degree angle. 'Although I've been through a lot, I wouldn't change what happened because I probably wouldn't have Dino or Vinnie. The University of Nottingham students made the outfits for a bar crawl and posed in them for a student news site. share price plunge when it emerged the Smiler had been involved in a collision. A woman who lost her leg in a rollercoaster crash at Alton Towers has received a multi-million pound payout four years on. ALTON Towers Smiler crash victim Vicky Balch has married her fianc in an "emotional" wedding ceremony six years after losing her leg. I need to go to the same physio my entire life, the same appointments my entire life. At least 16 were injured and five people were seriously hurt when it smashed into a broken down carriage after a series of blunders. He said: 'Passengers were held for some time at that very difficult angle.'. With 14 inversions, The Smiler holds the world record for most inversions on a roller coaster.