A 12-year-old boy died on a Kansas water slide that is billed as the world's largest.
The incident happened at the Schlitterbahn Waterpark, which is located about 24km (15 miles) west of Kansas City, Missouri.
Schlitterbahn spokeswoman Winter Prosapio said the child died on one of the park’s main attractions, Verruckt, a 51m (168ft) tall water slide that has 264 stairs leading to the top.
The park was closed after the incident on Sunday and will remain shut on Monday, and the ride is closed pending an investigation, Ms Prosapio said.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time,” she said, adding that the boy’s family had been at the park with him.
She said the park’s rides are inspected daily, and inspected by an “outside party” before the start of each season.
Verruckt, which means "insane" in German, was certified as the world's tallest water slide by Guinness World Records. Verruckt riders go down the slide in multi-person rafts and have to be at least 137cm (54 inches) tall, according to the park's website.
The slide’s 2014 opening was delayed a few times, though the operators did not provide reasons for the delays. Two media sneak preview days in 2014 were cancelled because of problems with a conveyor system that hauls 45kg (100lb) rafts to the top of the slide.
Ms Prosapio had said in 2014 that park officials would not hesitate to delay operations again for however long it took to make sure the slide is safe.
In 2014, Schlitterbahn co-owner Jeff Henry told USA Today that he and senior designer John Schooley had based their calculations when designing the slide on rollercoasters, but that did not translate well to a water slide like Verruckt.
In early tests, rafts carrying sandbags flew off the slide, prompting engineers to tear down half of the ride and reconfigure some angles at a cost of $1 million (€901, 794), Mr Henry said.
A promotional video for a show about building the slide includes footage of two men riding a raft down a half-size test model and going slightly airborne as it crests the top of the first big hill.
AP