Box cutter falls from roller coaster rider’s pocket, striking girl’s head, PA cops say

A young girl was at a Pennsylvania amusement park when she was struck in the head by a box cutter, authorities said.

It’s believed that the tool fell from the pocket of a roller coaster rider, according to an Aug. 15 news release from the East Lampeter Township Police Department.

Officers were called to Dutch Wonderland at 5:37 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12.

By the time they arrived, the preteen girl had left with family for treatment at an urgent care facility, police said. She had “a minor head injury requiring no further medical care.”

The girl and her family were visiting from out of state, police said.

In a statement to McClatchy News, a Dutch Wonderland spokesperson said the park learned a girl “had been accidentally struck by a utility tool” at about 5:15 p.m. that Saturday. She was treated by park first aid before she and her family left.

Dutch Wonderland managers told officers that she “had been standing in a common area over which spans a large roller coaster” when she was hit by the falling tool, according to the police news release.

The box cutter’s blade was closed, officials said, and “the knife was not being used nor displayed.”

Police have considered the incident “accidental in nature.” There is no criminal investigation taking place.

Box cutters and multi-tool knives are prohibited from Dutch Wonderland, according to the park’s rules and policies. Parkgoers who do not follow the rules are “subject to immediate ejection from the Park without refund.”

East Lampeter Township is about 70 miles northwest of Philadelphia.

This story was originally published August 17, 2023 at 3:17 PM with the headline "Box cutter falls from roller coaster rider’s pocket, striking girl’s head, PA cops say."