The girlfriend of a man who tragically died after riding a roller coaster at Universal Orlando has described the terrifying moments, as newly released bodycam footage captures her account.
Kevin Rodriguez Zavala, 32, visited the Epic Universe park in Orlando, Florida on September 17 last year with his partner, Javiliz Cruz-Robles, when the incident occurred.
The couple boarded the Stardust Racers coaster and began the experience as normal after staff assisted and secured them in their seats.
But once the train started speeding through drops and turns, Kevin reportedly appeared to lose proper support in his seat. He suffered multiple blunt force injuries to his head and later died at a local hospital.
Javiliz said the belt appeared “tight,” but explained that Kevin’s medical condition meant he could not support the lower half of his body in the way other riders might.
Footage now released shows Orange County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) deputies arriving to speak with Javiliz and record her statement. The video has been obtained by outlets including Fox 35 and WKMG.
In the clip, Javiliz—her face blurred—can be heard emotionally describing what she says happened on the ride.
She said in the clip: “We went on the ride. He was too low, he doesn’t have any support on his leg.”
A police report states Kevin’s parents told investigators he had been diagnosed with Spinal Cord Atrophy and used a wheelchair due to the condition, which involves degeneration of spinal cord volume, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Javiliz also told deputies that staff checked the restraints repeatedly and pushed down on them multiple times to confirm they were secure, adding she even believed the lap area felt overly tight, according to The Guardian.
Despite that, she said the first major drop caused Kevin to hit his head against a metal bar, and that he continued striking his head as the coaster moved through additional drops and shifts, with his body lifting upward.
“I tried — I saw him on the first drop. I saw him hit his head. I tried to hold him; I couldn’t hold him. Another one, he hit his head… He just went up and hit… It looked like [the restraint] was tight, but it wasn’t because he didn’t have support on his neck,” she told officers, adding that Kevin suffered a number of injuries which she tried to prevent mid-ride.
She said: “He kept hitting his head, I tried to hold him so he doesn’t hit his head anymore.”
Javiliz also recalled yelling for help, but said that because they were partway through the ride, nobody heard her.
According to the Sheriff’s report, a doctor who was waiting to ride said she examined Kevin when the coaster came to a stop. The doctor, identified as Anna Marshall, alleged Kevin appeared slumped over with one arm hanging off the side, and claimed his femur looked broken, with the bone positioned on the back of the seat.
An autopsy later concluded Kevin died from “multiple blunt impact injuries,” according to Orange and Osceola counties chief medical examiner Joshua Stephany.
He told People, it was ruled as an accident.
OCSO said staff followed appropriate procedures when checking Kevin’s restraints before the ride began, and investigators determined that “no criminal acts occurred”.
Kevin’s family later retained attorney Ben Crump to pursue an independent investigation and subsequently reached an out-of-court settlement with Universal Orlando, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.