密歇根新闻广播 加强游乐园管理

It was supposed to be a day of fun at AJ's Family Fun Center near Grand Rapids in 2015. Rachel Gibbs wore a scarf on the cool August day. Staff at AJ's made no mention of the potentially dangerous item as Gibbs and her youngest son loaded into a go-kart and zipped off. During the ride, Gibbs' scarf got caught in one of the go-kart's axles, snapping her windpipe.

The injury left Gibbs severely¹ brain-damaged. Today she is in a long-term care center outside of London, United Kingdon, less than an hour from where her husband and two sons live.

Gibbs' sister, Corri Sandwick, has become an advocate for stricter safety laws at amusement parks in the wake of her family's tragedy.

Sandwick was at AJ's that day and remembers several troubling aspects of the park's safety protocols². She says there was no emergency phone, automated³ external defibrillator, or first-aid kit⁴ near the go-kart track.

When Gibbs' husband Luke called emergency services from his British cellphone, the staff couldn't remember the address of the facility.

As she looked into amusement park regulations after her sister's accident, Sandwick learned that the state agency responsible for overseeing amusement parks does not inspect operators' safety procedures, despite a reference to safety recommendations in the state's Carnival⁵-Amusement Safety Act.

One reason: The department simply doesn't have the funding to inspect for safety standards.

There's not enough fee generation within the permitting process to actually check that safety standards are in place at amusement parks, Sandwick said. The main thing that they're going out to inspect is the mechanical equipment.

Sandwick has worked with Michigan State Representative Thomas Albert (R-District 86) to address these gaps in safety procedures. Rep. Albert said he favors a voluntary approach to safety procedures, something similar to the Carolina Star Program, which recognizes workplaces and facilities that meet certain safety requirements.

We don't want to come down with a heavy hand and over-regulate and basically prohibit these businesses from being able to offer a good time for families to go to in the summer, Albert said.

Stateside reached out to the Department of Licensing⁶ and Regulatory Affairs with specific claims about the department's oversight⁷ of carnivals⁸ and amusement parks in Michigan.

LARA confirmed that as the administrator⁹ of the Carnival-Amusement Safety Act, the department permits and inspects individual amusement park rides. They do not license¹⁰ amusement park operators, and they do not inspect amusement park safety procedures.

Regarding funding, LARA wrote that the revenue it generates from permitting and inspection¹¹ is "insufficient¹² for the administration of the Carnival Safety Amusement Act."

As a result, LARA would not recommend support for any future legislation that would increase oversight without an accompanying increase in revenue generated by permitting and inspection.

1 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

2 protocols   

n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划）

参考例句：

• There are also protocols on the testing of nuclear weapons. 也有关于核武器试验的协议。 来自辞典例句
• Hardware components and software design of network transport protocols are separately introduced. 介绍系统硬件组成及网络传输协议的软件设计。 来自互联网

3 automated   

a.自动化的

参考例句：

• The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
• Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS)，作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。

4 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

5 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。

6 licensing   

v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• A large part of state regulation consists of occupational licensing. 大部分州的管理涉及行业的特许批准。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• That licensing procedures for projects would move faster. 这样的工程批准程序一定会加快。 来自辞典例句

7 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

8 carnivals   

狂欢节( carnival的名词复数 )； 嘉年华会； 激动人心的事物的组合； 五彩缤纷的颜色组合

参考例句：

• The Venice Carnival is one of the oldest and most famous international carnivals in the world. 威尼斯嘉年华是世界上最古老、最富盛名的国际嘉年华会之一。 来自常春藤生活英语杂志-2006年2月号
• A few exceptions would be made, he said, such as for carnivals. 他说一些免责条款将被制定出来，例如嘉年华会。

9 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

10 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

11 inspection   

n.检查，审查，检阅

参考例句：

• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。
• The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。

12 insufficient   

adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的

参考例句：

• There was insufficient evidence to convict him.没有足够证据给他定罪。
• In their day scientific knowledge was insufficient to settle the matter.在他们的时代，科学知识还不能足以解决这些问题。