The Raging Rivers Waterpark has been accused by a family of fat shaming. Photo / KMOV 4
The Raging Rivers Waterpark has been accused by a family of fat shaming. Photo / KMOV 4
A man in the US state of Illinois has slammed a local water park after staff allegedly "publicly humiliated" his 13-year-old because of her weight.
Andrew Batton told Missouri TV station KMOV that he'd visited the Raging Rivers Waterpark with his family, where his daughter was looking forward to riding a new ride called the Mississippi Monster Slide.
When the teen got to the top of the hill to ride the attraction, however, a worker asked her to hop on a scale in front of strangers because it had a weight limit of 90kg (200 pounds).
"The guy looked at us and to my daughter and said, 'You need to step on the scale'. She steps on the scale and she's 205," Batton said, meaning she wasn't allowed on.
Mr Batton said the experience had "saddened me beyond words". Photo / KMOV 4
The dad, whose family are season ticket holders for the waterpark, added that there were no signs indicating a weight limit for the ride.
"I was like, 'There's nothing on the media about that. Was this posted anywhere?' [The worker] was like, 'No. We've had some people getting hurt so we're limiting the weight on the ride'," Batton said.
The incident left his daughter with "tears … in her eyes".
"The disappointment that she felt by not being able to ride the brand-new ride was definitely overshadowed by the public humiliation of being asked to step on a scale," he said.
"Then further than that, being told that you're overweight.
"We as parents now have to undo the emotional damage that this corporate company caused us."
Batton also expressed his disappointment with the waterpark in a post on Facebook that has since been shared hundreds of times.
"Let's leave out the amazingly damaging psychological impact of forcing a young woman to publicly weigh herself, but to have to see my daughter's face eyes welling up with tears as she was turned away for being FIVE POUNDS OVER!" he wrote.
Andrew Batton also expressed his disappointment with the waterpark in a post on Facebook. Photo / KMOV 4
"The employee was extremely upset as well and explained that this scene has been playing out all day and many people had been upset/surprised by the restriction … Raging Rivers has been such a source of joy for my daughter throughout her childhood to have such an amazingly awful experience today has saddened me beyond words as well as negativity (sic) impacted my daughter in a way that I am sure we are going to be discussing in therapy for years to come."
While a spokesman for Raging Rivers Waterpark Jimmy Holmes said new tubes for the water slide have now been ordered so that its weight capacity can be increased, he defended the worker's actions toward the teen.
The teen was turned away from riding the park's new Mississippi Monster water slide because she exceeded the weight limit. Photo / KMOV 4
"Our goal is never to embarrass anyone, but we must look out for their safety while visiting Raging Rivers. Raging Rivers takes an abundance of precautions to ensure the safety of our guests while enjoying our slides and attractions," Holmes said.
"The new Mississippi Monster Slide has a max weight of 200lbs per rider. Signage is located at the base of the slide, alerting guests of this restriction. In addition, there is a scale that all guests who choose to ride the attraction must step on to ensure they meet the safety requirements for the ride.
"We will continue to follow manufacturer guidelines for safety while offering our guests a fun experience at Raging Rivers Waterpark."
