Space Mountain closed as Disney reviews safety

Published April 15, 2013

Associated Press

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  Disneyland has temporarily shut down the popular ride because of safety concerns.AP

ANAHEIM, Calif. –  Three rides at Disneyland, including the famous Space Mountain roller coaster, were temporarily closed over the weekend as the company reviewed its employee safety protocols after citations from state regulators.

The citations were received Friday from the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, according to Disneyland Resorts spokeswoman Suzi Brown.

The closures Saturday of Space Mountain, the Matterhorn Bobsleds and Soarin' Over California were voluntary and were made out of an abundance of caution, Brown said Sunday.

"We constantly strive to maintain a safe work environment for our cast members and contractors — and we are reviewing certain protocols," she said.

The citations were related to an incident in November when a contracted worker was injured while performing maintenance on the exterior of the Space Mountain attraction.

Disneyland failed to adequately correct "known fall hazards" that existed on the exterior of Space Mountain, according to a description of the citation on the Cal/OSHA website.

"Furthermore, Disneyland Resort failed to have approved anchorages or approved tie-backs for contract employees to attach to when performing scheduled exterior building maintenance," the description reads.

The Matterhorn reopened Sunday. Brown said Sunday it is unclear how long the other two rides will remain closed.

Space Mountain and the Matterhorn Bobsleds are at Disneyland. Soarin' Over California, a simulated hang-glider flight, is at Disney California Adventure.

Officials with Cal/OSHA did not immediately reply Sunday to a request for comment.

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Egypt protest group signs Morsi up to go to space

CAIRO –  An Egyptian opposition group is using a novel way to protest against President Mohammed Morsi: Sign him up for a chance to win a trip to space.

The April 6 Youth Movement said on its official Facebook page on Thursday that it had entered the Islamist leader's name in the online contest because it wanted to be rid of him. It called on supporters to vote for the president so he'd have a chance to win the trip into space.

There was no immediate response from the president's press office to an email seeking comment.

"For sure, no one in the universe can put up with blatant lies, reneging on promises except for the brotherly people of the moon," the group wrote on its post.

"It is for this reason that the president needs your votes. President Morsi, we wish you safe travels."

April 6 was a driving force behind the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak's regime. Many of its supporters backed Morsi in the June 2012 election he narrowly won to become Egypt's first freely elected president.

But later, the group became among the fiercest critics of the president and his Muslim Brotherhood, the fundamentalist group from which he hails. The opposition accuses Morsi of monopolizing power and going back on campaign promises to have an inclusive government and introduce far reaching reforms.

Morsi's supporters say the new government cannot immediately fix years of neglect and poor administration from Mubarak's 29-year rule.

The group also posted a collage of Morsi, who is a U.S.-trained engineer, in a white space suit.

"I want to go to space because I completed my mission," April 6 mockingly quoted Morsi as saying below his image.

The contest is being run by Axe, a brand of men's grooming products. It promises to send 22 people to the edge of space and back aboard a private spaceship. For the competition, Axe teamed up with U.S. astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon during NASA's Apollo 11 mission in 1969.

Contestants sign up and then get their friends to vote for them. Those with the most votes move to the next stage where they compete in their own country for a chance to go into space. The top recruits advance to a space camp in Orlando, Florida, where they are to take part in three training missions. A panel of space experts chooses those contestants they think are prepared to make the trip into space.

The winners then are to fly 103 kilometers (64 miles) into space with the space tourism company, Space Expedition Corp.

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https://www2.axeapollo.com/en_AE/244825/mohammed-morsi?image=0(hash)./mohammed-morsi?&_suid=13614680934900703352844006959

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