Visitors take roller coaster at Happy Valley theme park in the city of Shenzhen in South China's Guangdong Province on March 8, 2023. Photo: from IC.

The company responsible for a roller coaster accident that injured eight people in South China's Shenzhen, Happy Valley Shenzhen, issued a statement early Wednesday morning to apologize to all the injured tourists and their families as well as to the public.

"The company will spare no effort in supporting the injured, and will diligently cooperate in  accidentinvestigation, and will never evade responsibility," the company stated in the announcement.

A day earlier, the Shenzhen Market Supervision Administration, together with the office of The State Council Safety Committee and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council jointly interviewed Happy Valley Shenzhen to address the roller coaster accident.

Two roller coaster trains collided at Happy Valley at around 6:27 pm on Friday when an ascending coaster train with 22 visitors on board suddenly slid down along the track and crashed with another train at the platform, according to a statement released by the Safety Management Committee Office of Nanshan District, where the amusement park is located.

Local authorities in Shenzhen set up a joint investigation team and ordered Happy Valley Shenzhen to suspend operations immediately after the collision. Officials confirmed the injured were sent to the hospital for treatment and none of them were in life-threatening condition.

According to the announcement, the passengers on the stationary train having finished their ride were exiting the ride, but nine remained on board when the collision occurred, leading to several injuries.

Eight injured individuals were transported to the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital by ambulance. Other injured individuals sought medical attention at nearby hospitals. Those with less severe injuries left the hospital after examination on their own, while some remained in the hospital for observation and treatment.

The University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital said that there were still 10 injured individuals receiving treatment at the hospital's surgical inpatient department, including some who were transferred from the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), The Beijing News reported on Saturday afternoon.

According to The Beijing News report on Friday evening, staff from the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Hospital, and Huazhong University of Science and Technology Union Shenzhen Hospital received a number of the injured individuals from the accident.

Four injured individuals including three men and a woman were receiving treatment at the ICU of the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital. One of the men had brain bleeding and brain tissue contusion and was undergoing intubation treatment, while the other three were in stable condition.

The medical treatment group on Sunday evening released a statement, saying that eight injured individuals were immediately transported to the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital for treatment by ambulance on the night of the incident.

Subsequently, more injured people were transferred or went to the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital, Nanshan Hospital, and Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Hospital for treatment. 28 individuals were received by the three hospitals, of which 11 left on their own after examination showing no issues.

Currently, there are 17 individuals remaining in the hospital for treatment, of which four were treated in ICU for craniocerebral injury and pelvic fracture, and their vital signs were stable. The other 13 people suffered soft tissue contusions and minor fractures, and continued receiving treatment in the general ward.

The local health departments will continue to coordinate and allocate medical resources, and make every effort to ensure the treatment of the injured, the statement said.

On Tuesday, the State Administration for Market Regulation together with the Work Safety Committee of the State Council and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council held a joint talk with Overseas Chinese Town (OCT) Group.

The Communist Party of China's Central Committee and the State Council prioritize workplace safety, emphasizing the need to firmly instill the concept of safe development, enhance corporate responsibility, uphold the safety standards, and effectively protect the lives and property of the people.

The accident has caused multiple injuries, exposing problems such as inadequate implementation of safety responsibilities, poor safety management, weak risk prevention and control, and inaccurate reporting of accident information, resulting in adverse social impact and profound lessons.

The OCT Group is required to urge Shenzhen OCT Happy Valley to treat the injured, cooperate in accident investigation, learn from the accident, and fully implement the corporate safety responsibility.

Additionally, the company should learn from this incident and conduct comprehensive hazard identification and rectification in its subsidiary amusement parks, effectively strengthen the safety management of large-scale amusement facilities and other special equipment, resolutely prevent the occurrence of major accidents and safeguard the safety standards of special equipment, so as to ensure the safety of people's lives and property.

Several passengers on the two trains shared their experience on social media.

"Everyone was screaming when the train started moving back. The riders in the two rows behind me were more seriously injured, with three to four people in each row," said one rider sitting in the third-to-last row on the ascending train.

Another tourist on the stationary train said the front train collided at extremely high speed, causing severe damage. "I was lucky to get off the ride relatively quickly. But, some passengers were thrown out of their seats, colliding with the carriage and safety bars. Some were seriously injured and had lost consciousness".

Several visitors said the roller coaster called "Snowy Eagle" is one of the most popular amusement attractions in the park and the roller coaster has had launch failure and made passengers on board unable to leave it days before the accident happened, China Newsweek reported.

Opened to the public in 2012 and designed by the world-renowned roller coaster manufacturer S&S Worldwide, "Snowy Eagle" featured a world-class pneumatic launch system at that time. It is operated by Shenzhen Oct Happy Kingdom Tourism Company and is subject to routine maintenance by the Happy Valley Company with the most recent inspection conducted in June 2023.

The inspection lasted for over one month and included checking vehicles, tracks, and electrical components.

Currently, the joint accident investigation team has invited domestic experts to participate in the accident investigation and equipment inspection within the park as the specific cause of the accident needs to be further investigated.

Officials said the joint investigation team will take appropriate actions regarding responsible organizations and individuals in accordance with the law. It will also carry out hazard inspections and rectification in all the tourist attractions and special equipment within the entire region.

According to Beijing Tianyancha Technology Co., Ltd, Happy Valley Shenzhen has been subjected to administrative penalties by the Market Supervision Bureau of Nanshan District on two occasions. In 2008, it was fined 200,000 yuan (roughly $ 27.334) for rear-end sightseeing train collision. While in June 2023, it was fined 30,000 yuan for illegal activities relating to special equipment within the park.

The roller coaster accident in Shenzhen sparked public debate over the safety of amusement rides in China, the world's second-largest theme park market with the largest number of roller coasters maintained or under construction.

The manufacturer of the roller coaster "Snowy Eagle" is S&S Worldwide, which currently has more than 400 roller coasters in more than 30 countries around the world, of which nine are in China, including those under construction. According to the official website of Shenzhen Happy Valley, "Snow Eagle" is a catapult roller coaster with a speed of up to 135 km/h and an investment of about 200 million yuan.