Guests climb aboard elongated boats that are typically shaped and themed to look like logs, which are pushed by water that is pumped into different parts of the course. Quickly, Log Flumes became exceedingly popular and became staples of amusement and theme parks across the world, with much of the design remaining relatively unchanged since. Their first installation was вЂEl AserraderoвЂ™ (The Sawmill) which debuted at Six Flags Over Texas in 1963, and is still in operation today, with вЂThe Mill RaceвЂ™ following it only a few weeks later at Cedar Point. It wasnвЂ™t until the 1960вЂ™s that the modern log flume was truly perfected by a company called Arrow Development. And old mill rides, which usually just had a boat that floated along a trough, through darkened mill-building tunnels. The modern-day log flumes are a variant of the shoot-the-chute rides, which still continue to be built today, and featured a larger passenger boat thatВ would slide down a chute and skip along the water at the bottom before being manually hoisted back up the slope. Such rides were the precursor of the modern log-ride amusement park rides.ДЄs theme park rides developed and evolved into the early 20 th century, boat and chute rides began to pop up, taking their inspiration from this fun-looking logging technology. A ride down the flume would surely rival that of the modern day amusement park ride, as due to gradient of some of these transport channels, the speeds could reach up to 50 miles an hour. On occasion, despite being exceedingly dangerous, flume herders and others would ride down the flume in small crafts or boats, either for inspection or for thrills. The theme park spokeswoman noted that some characters werenвЂ™t fully functioning, but disputed that the number was as high as described in the tweet.Employed by these sawmills, were вЂflume herdersвЂ™, whose main responsibility it was to inspect the length of the channels, to ensure the lumber wasnвЂ™t jamming up and to watch for leaks or breaks in the flume. вЂњNo joke- 80% of the animatronics are currently off,вЂќ the tweet read. One visitor who described the wet-and-wild scene also wrote hours earlier that heвЂ™d just gotten off the ride to find it eerily quiet. The incident was reviewed, and Splash Mountain has since reopened, the spokeswoman said. Guests currently being evacвЂ™d PAST IT rather than an alternate route.вЂќДЄll told, five guests left the ride without injury, according to a Disney World spokeswoman. вЂњBoat is entirely under water, with its nose UNDER the log in front of it. вЂњA ride vehicle has completely sunk on Splash Mountain- just after the Riverboat finale scene,вЂќ their message read. вЂњthe disney world employee decided to tell us that we shouldвЂ™ve stayed in the boat but it went under as soon as we all stepped outвЂ¦ niceвЂќДЄnother passenger on the doomed trip tweeted a pair of before-and-after photos, the first showing her and her boyfriend seated in the ride with water up past their ankles, and the second of the mostly submerged boat.ДЄ third visitor wrote that the mishap happened shortly after the rideвЂ™s climactic moment. вЂњso we got out of our boat because it was sinking while we were stuck there,вЂќ wrote one rider, along with a video clip of the water-logged vessel. Passengers on the log flume tweeted late Sunday about a harrowing experience in which their boat took on water at the end of the ride at the Florida theme park.

Some unlucky riders on Disney WorldвЂ™s Splash Mountain almost ended up вЂњunder the sea.вЂќ

First log flume ride in the world