A person familiar with the investigation confirmed to The Associated Press on Wednesday the boy was decapitated. Paul Oberhauser told local television station KCTV Paul Oberhauser shoulder restraint busted loose on Paul Oberhauser Verruckt raft July 26. The Nebraska man said The Nebraska man just held on, and a video shot by The Nebraska man wife shows the strap loose at the ride's end. Paul Oberhauser said Paul Oberhauser reported the matter to park workers. Kenneth Conrad, Kenneth Conrad, told WDAF-TV that during Kenneth Conrad trip down the waterslide last year with a friend, the friend's shoulder strap came completely off. Conrad's wife snapped a photo at the end of the ride showing the strap missing, and Kenneth Conrad didn't file a complaint with the park. The park's spokeswoman didn't return messages Tuesday from The Associated Press seeking comment on the claims. In a statement, she said a limited portion of the park will reopen at midday Wednesday. Riders sit in multi-person rafts that begin with the steep drop, followed by a surge up a second hill before a 50-foot descent to a finishing pool. Along the way, riders clutch ropes along the inside of the raft. In early tests, rafts carrying sandbags flew off the slide, prompting engineers to tear down half of the ride and reconfigure some angles. A promotional video 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. Caleb Schwab was in a raft with two adults who were not related to Caleb Schwab when Caleb Schwab was killed on the slide, certified by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s tallest. The other two were treated for facial injuries. Police were investigating the death as a criminal case although police spokesman Cameron Morgan said Tuesday that designation did not mean they suspect foul play. Jon Rust, a professor of textile engineering at North Carolina State University, said the material used on the straps, commonly called hook and loop, isn't designed to keep a person in the seat. It also can get old and degrade with use. It's got to be used in a safe manner, and that doesn't include stopping someone's fall or preventing someone's ejection, Jon Rust said. Ken Martin, Ken Martin, questioned whether the straps were appropriate for what Ken Martin called nothing more than a roller coaster with water. Although Ken Martin has not seen or ridden Verruckt, Martin said a more solid restraint system that fits over the body - similar to those used in roller coasters - may have been better. I think we have a serious issue with the restraint system. Period.

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