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Adventureland's Wave Twister remains closed amid investigation into why riders got stuck for hours

Adventureland reopened Saturday, but the Wave Twister ride remained closed as the Long Island amusement park investigates what caused it to break down with more than a dozen children on board. 

Authorities rescued fifteen kids and an adult chaperone from the East Farmingdale park's newest attraction Friday night after it got stuck about 25 feet off the ground. The rescue operation took about three hours.

Unclear when ride will reopen

Adventureland workers kept a close eye on the Wave Twister when the park opened for the weekend, but park officials said they had no update on what might've caused the incident the night before. 

The incident started at around 7:30 p.m. Friday, but the last rider was not rescued until 10:40 p.m., according to authorities. 

Firefighters help riders stuck on amusement park ride
Firefighters conducted a rescue after passengers got stuck on a ride at Long Island's Adventureland amusement park on June 19, 2026. Chopper 2

"They just stopped it completely. And that's the point where everybody started snapping, crying, screaming at people to call 911. There was no service anywhere, so we were all panicking," said a 6th grade student who was stuck on the ride. "I was personally screaming, telling everybody. A couple kids were laughing down there. Kids were crying. It was, woof, chaotic."

The children on board ranged in age from 5-12 years old and no injuries were reported.   

Adventureland later released a statement thanking first responders for the rescue effort.

"We understand the concern of the riders and their families who were involved," the statement said in part, "and we will be working with our ride consultants to fully assess what happened."

The park has not said when the ride will reopen.    

Coaster "felt weird" during test run, rider says

Adam Rosen, an Adventureland season ticketholder from Melville, said he and his son rode the Wave Twister during a test run before its official opening in March. 

"We were test dummies for it, and it felt weird in the beginning," Rosen said. "We were there a couple times. It got smoother and smoother, so I thought they got the things out." 

Riders must be at least 48 inches tall to ride alone and 36 inches to ride with an adult, according to Adventureland. 

"I would never want to go on that ride again," Rosen added. 

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