Families of victims in Shenzhen ride horror cry foul

The families of six people who died when a ride at a Shenzhen amusement park malfunctioned last week have criticised the park management's handling of the tragedy as 'inhumane and unreasonable'.

Shenzhen police announced yesterday that they had detained 11 people for further investigation, including the killer ride's supplier, supervisor, operator and safety examiner.

Most of the 11 cabins on the Space Journey ride at the Ecoventure Valley amusement park turned upside down on June 29, killing six people and injuring 10 others.

The victims' families and Shenzhen authorities confirmed yesterday that 11 relatives of two victims had been detained by police at the weekend after more than 20 grieving family members blocked roads outside the amusement park. The park's management had denied them permission to enter the park to perform traditional mourning rituals for the dead at the scene of the accident.

The victims' families denied they had reached compensation deals with the company that runs the park, state-owned Overseas Chinese Town Holding Co, and were still waiting for it to give them a detailed report on the investigation into the accident.

Mao Hong , a relative of three of those who died - doctor Wu Lian , 48, and his wife and 24-year-old daughter - said family members had been isolated by the park's owners at a nearby hotel for more than a week and nobody was informing them of the latest developments in the investigation.