Oregon teens trapped upside down on amusement park ride for 25 minutes awarded combined $550K

Two Oregon teens who were among 28 people left dangling upside down on a broken-down amusement park thrill ride were awarded a combined $550,000 as compensation for the traumatic event. Xitlali Gomez-Salais and Evie Yannotta, who were just 13 and 14 at the time, both feared they would fall 100 feet to their deaths when they got stuck on the pendulum swing ride AtmosFEAR at Oaks Amusement Park in Portland in June 2024, the Oregonian reported. Nine people filed lawsuits against the park – with seven people settling, all for different amounts. A jury ruled Wednesday that Gomez-Salais and Yannotta, both now 16, should be awarded $275,000 each after the pair had sued the park and the ride’s manufacturer Zamperla for $2 million. Twenty-eight people were trapped upside down for 25 minutes after t