Four killed on Dreamworld theme park ride in Australia

Four people have been killed in an accident at an Australian theme park, hours after engineers worked on the ride in question.

The accident happened on the Thunder River Rapids at Dreamworld, one of the most popular family holiday destinations on Queensland's Gold Coast.

A Queensland Ambulance spokesman said two people were thrown from the ride, and another two were "caught inside", trapped underneath in the conveyor belt.

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The BBC says the casualties were two men and two women. The park, which is in Coomera, has been closed until further notice and an investigation is underway by a health and safety agency and the police.

The Thunder River Rapids has been in existence for 34 years and is a "staple" for families visiting the park, says The Guardian. It is classified as "family friendly" and involves floating down a river with artificial rapids.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, there was a problem with the ride several hours before one part of it flipped over in the fatal crash. Witnesses said they had waited for 30 minutes while engineers worked on it that morning.

One person told Nine News: "We were waiting there for about half an hour and the engineers had to come. They drained all the water out and then had to refill it back up.

"Then we were allowed to go. We were stuck there for about 30, 40 minutes at least."

Another visitor, Lisa Walker, said: "Earlier in the day it had broken down. It had broken down and we went back a couple of times to this particular ride.

"We were standing on the bridge watching and the water had stopped. There were no rapids."

The park is operated by Ardent Theme Parks, which said it was "deeply shocked and saddened by the accident". The company's stock fell by as much as eight per cent on Tuesday after the news broke.