Amusement parks under scrutiny
The death of a 19-year-old in Pefkohori, Halkidiki, highlights safety gaps and licensing issues
The tragedy in Pefkohori, Halkidiki in northern Greece on Monday, when a 19-year-old was fatally injured after being ejected from a spinning-chair ride because his seat broke, has raised questions regarding how permits are granted and how inspections are carried out.
After the accident, the 58-year-old owner of the amusement park was arrested, while a few hours later the 21-year-old operator of the ride, who had initially left the scene, turned himself in to the Kilkis Police Department.
By law, the licensing authority for amusement parks is the municipality. In this case, the Municipality of Kassandra was reportedly informed by the Hellenic Police (ELAS) on July 12 about the operation of the amusement park in question after it had inspected the business on July 10. The owner showed an engineer’s certificate to show that the machines were in good condition, but was unable to produce the operating license. ELAS then submitted a relevant question to the municipality, which was not answered. According to the law, it has a 60-day deadline to respond.
Mayor of Kassandra Anastasia Halkia told Kathimerini that the procedures for imposing sanctions were initiated when the municipality was informed. It should be noted the municipality cannot shut down a business that does not have a license, but only impose a fine of 30,000 euros. “[The amusement park] comes every summer and gets a temporary license for two months. We didn’t know it had opened, it was in a private area. It hadn’t notified Notify Business, nor had it applied for a license; it was as if it didn’t exist,” she said.
“I don’t have an inspection mechanism, I don’t know what might be opening illegally in the municipality. Two years ago I applied for municipal police. Eleven of them were approved and I am waiting for them to be sent to us,” she said.
According to the relevant law, the municipality is the sole authority for the implementation of the legal framework for the granting of licenses and the control of compliance with the operating requirements of amusement parks. The municipality may also impose closure and fines for violations of the relevant legislation.
The framework for the operation and licensing of amusement parks was recently reformed in response to other deadly incidents, such as that in Almyros, Volos in August 2019, when a 13-year-old girl suffered fatal injuries.
