Pirates of the Caribbean at the Magic Kingdom To Be Closed All Summer Due to Safety Concerns
We kind of knew this was coming, but it seems Pirates of the Caribbean at the Magic Kingdom will be closed May 11th through September 25th, 2015.
Photo by Joe Hogarty, WDWNT.com
A two day refurbishment of the attraction this week allowed Disney to assess issues with the new boats & the ride track and create a game plan to fix the system, removing safety concerns.
Last summer, a guest who had his hand outside of the boat lost tips of his ring and pinky fingers as the then-recently installed new boats rubbed against the older ride track. Guests were not permitted to sit in the last row of the Pirates of the Caribbean boats on either coast as Disney investigated the issues.
Beyond safety concerns, the new boats have been problematic with many taking on water or severe damage while riding along the ride-path. Guests have complained about getting much wetter on the ride than in years past, as the boats roughly passed through the turn in the track following the ride’s one drop.
Rumors have also insisted that some scene changes were coming to the ride in late-2015/early 2016, so it is unclear if any of those changes will be made now or wait for another refurbishment down the road. We’ll just have to wait and see on that.