3rd lawsuit filed over injuries on Mammoth Park's Giant Slide

A third lawsuit has been filed against Westmoreland County over the newly built Giant Slide in Mammoth Park.

Katherine McClelland of Fayette City, in court documents filed this week, claims she broke her ankle and suffered other injuries as a result of a ride down the slide July 14, 2020.

McClelland, 39, abruptly accelerated and was unable to control her body as her leg and foot were caught underneath her as she slid, according to the lawsuit.

“Plaintiff was thrown violently off of the slide before landing on the ground,” contends the lawsuit filed by attorney Stephen C. Paul of Pittsburgh.

McClelland, who was at the park with her partner, was excited to get outside during the covid restrictions only to leave the park injured, Paul said. Those injuries could be permanent, and he said the county’s negligence is to blame.

“It seems like the county was more focused on spectacle than safety,” Paul said.

The alleged incident occurred less than two weeks after the rebuilt slides opened July 2, 2020, at the 408-acre park in Mt. Pleasant Township. A two-year, $1.1 million project replaced the 96-foot attraction that had been in place since 1973 with two 100-foot steel racing slides, along with a smaller 50-foot ride.

County officials closed the slides a month after opening when several riders claimed they were injured. County officials said last year the injuries were because riders did not properly follow safety guidelines. Still, the county added extra safety precautions, including netting, and posted more detailed instructions about how to use the slide before it was reopened in June 2021.

McClelland claims the slide wasn’t safe and lacked adequate friction to decelerate riders and that the county failed to warn users it was unsafe. She is seeking more than $30,000 in damages.

Westmoreland County solicitor Melissa Guiddy declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Previously, two Allegheny County women filed lawsuits — one in September and another last month — in which they contended they were injured on the Giant Slide on Aug. 1, 2020. Their lawsuits include similar allegations to those brought by McClelland, claiming the slide was unsafe.