Settlement reached in Adventureland Park wrongful death suit of 11-year-old boy

The former owners of Adventureland Park have reached a settlement with former Marion parents whose 11-year-old son was trapped underwater and died and their other son seriously injured when a 1,700-pound water raft ride flipped over July 3, 2021.

The wrongful death civil trial was set to start Monday in Polk County, but a settlement was reached Sunday, Fred Dorr, an attorney for the family of 11-year-old Michael Jaramillo and his brother, David Jr., 15 years old at the time of the accident, said Tuesday.

Dorr said the settlement terms included that the amount would remain confidential.

David Jaramillo Sr. and his wife, Sabrina Jaramillo, now of Cedar Rapids, have mixed emotions about the settlement, Dorr said. They wanted to confront and hold the owners accountable for the “horrific” incident that day, but they also didn’t want to relive the trauma of being flipped over and trapped under the raft.

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David Jaramillo Sr. saw his boys “strapped in” and hanging upside down. One of the boys was reaching out for him as he tried to push the 1,700-pound raft with a broken shoulder.

“He has to live with that image for the rest of his life,” Dorr said.

The family also had to deal with the stress and other emotions of waiting for this case to be resolved because of continuances, Dorr added. The trial initially was moved to Scott County and then back to Polk County.

According to the lawsuit, Michael and David Jr. remained trapped underwater for more than five minutes as rescue attempts by the injured parents were unsuccessful, the suit stated.

Adventureland employees continued to operate the ride even after the raft had overturned and the parents were screaming. The ride forced “thousands of pounds” of water down the river chute and released additional rafts as the children remained trapped, the lawsuit stated.

People nearby who heard the Jaramillos screaming came to help the family — including a woman in a passing raft who jumped in to assist — and eventually pulled the boys from under the water. Nobody from Adventureland came to help, the lawsuit contends.

David Jr. spent weeks in a medically induced coma, but survived the accident.

The suit stated the amusement park failed to properly maintain and repair its attractions, including the Raging River ride, for years. The ride continued to operate that day despite it having serious problems with rafts striking the bottom of the ride, air bladders within the rafts deflating, and mechanical equipment failures, according to the suit.

The park was sold to Palace Entertainment after the boy’s death, and Bill Lentz, Adventureland’s general manager, remained in that position for the new owner. The Raging River ride was permanently closed, Lentz said in a letter posted on the park’s website in 2023.

Last week, Adventureland and 24 other Palace Entertainment properties were sold to Herschend, according to the Des Moines Register. The family-held themed attractions company owns 49 other “leading attractions and immersive experiences,” including Dollywood and Silver Dollar City.

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