Originally Posted By jonathansportsc Hello. I am a current cast member at Disneyland, in the Tomorrowland attractions department. This past Sunday was interesting for two reasons, and I am not sure if you/ the site has been notified or not. On Sunday, August 19, 2007, there was a shutdown of the east side of the park. As I started my shift over at Astro Orbiter, at about 5:04 PM, the ride, which had been going for about ten seconds, automatically lowered the rockets. We thought it was just our ride, but as our lead came over, I received a call from Honey I Shrunk teh Audience, which is on a rotation with Astro Orbiter- they had closed at 17:06. As I soon found out, there had been a short blackout right around 17:04, that had effected Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, and Toontown. In fact, the only attraction that was seemingly not effected was Autopia, and I have heard conflicting reports about the Monorail. In any event, essentially all of the attractions in the East side of the park were closed, thus most guest redirected themselves to the other parts of the park. Oribtron was working a few minutes later, and around 40 minutes later, Autopia, Monorail, and Small World were the first rides up. Oribter came up sometime around 7, ( I was at HISTA) and, by the time HISTA was reopened, the first show was sometime between 9 and 9:30 PM- I was at Orbiter. Since all these rides had stopped, maintenance had their hands full, making sure all the rides were clear of guests, then making sure they were safe for operation- then the attractions cm's had to do their tests. Therefore, they pulled maintenance from the west side of the park to try and accommodate all that went on. I am sure City Hall and guest relations were flooded with complaints and questions about refunds, using their ultimate fastpass for the next day, etc. A guest told me that he heard, so this is definitely not first hand, that a car had hit a generator out on Katella, which had caused the blackout on the east side of the park. The whole situation seemed to be handled as fast as possible. Space was reopened after about an hour or hour fifteen, which is pretty quick I gather. guests that I interacted with seemed pretty understanding and appreciative of being told what was going on, but I know some other cm's had guests complain. I would rather of been operating my attractions, but there was nothing we could do. Although, when I was in the auditorium by myself over at Honey, i counted each seat- literally- as I was looking for trash and lost items. Just in case anyone cares, we have 567 seats, 8 spots for wheelchairs, but our capacity is 525. I would like to invite laughingplace readers to say hi to me for my few remaining weeks in tomorrowland. My name is Jonathan, I wear glasses, and I work on Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Astro Orbiter, and an occasional firework or parade shift. Sincerely, Jonathan
Originally Posted By trekkeruss <<the only attraction that was seemingly not effected was Autopia>> That makes complete sense, since the cars run on gasoline, not electricity. Welcome to LP.
Originally Posted By wonderingalice ^^Wise-acre... ;-) There are parts of Autopia that require electricity, as well... *L* Hi Jonathan! Glad to meet ya!
Originally Posted By alexbook >>A guest told me that he heard, so this is definitely not first hand, that a car had hit a generator out on Katella, which had caused the blackout on the east side of the park. << It was definitely not just a DL problem. There were traffic lights out of order as far away as Anaheim Blvd.
Originally Posted By jonathansportsc Does anyone actually know if the Monorail went down too or not? One cm told me it was down, (so I would guess the monorail towing vehicle may have come out) But an off duty cm told me that the monorail never stopped, and that Nemo may be closed for the whole day.
Originally Posted By monorailblue Large-scale outages aren't really all that uncommon, at least historically. When I was in the Park, we'd have a power surge or dip with some regularity, taking out 4, 5 or more Attractions at once. It sounds like it worked out just fine.
Originally Posted By Pollyana Welcome to LP Jonathan...I have many questions for a CM but I will be polite. I hope all the visitors understood what was happening and that it was a freak thing. Unfortunately, many families save money for a long time for this glorious vacation and want everything just right. That is what we all wish for,,right?? Hopefully it doesn't happen again for a long time.
Originally Posted By amazedncal2 Hi Jonathan and welcome to LP Thank you for the information. Sounds like you all had your hands full!
Originally Posted By jonathansportsc I asked a lead today, and the monorail was down for about 12 minutes. Pollyana- I completely feel for the people u were talking about. While it was an interesting experience, I could not stop thinking about those who were there for their first and perhaps only time, and had already done the other side of the park. And if u have questions, feel free to ask- i'll try to answer them . o ya, and btw, if I am being looked for, I am the one who calls himself "Professor Tom Morrow" at HISTA, and fills in quotes from attractions that many probably do not get (on both attractions)
Originally Posted By Disney_Blonde It seems since Nemo has opened, there is always some sort of blackout in the Tomorrowland area....it's sounds like just a coincidence this time, but it has been happening pretty often.
Originally Posted By tynkrbell1977 Well hello Jonathan and nice to meet you! =) I will be in DL in October. Will you still be in that area? Thank you for the info!
Originally Posted By Pollyana Yes, Jonathan, I will also be in Disneyland in October... 14-16..Maybe we will see you there!
Originally Posted By LPFan22 Thanks for introducing yourself Jonathan. Very nice to meet you! I'll look for you when I get to Tomorrowland next time. Probably in the next week or two. I'll be the one with the camera.
Originally Posted By dluvsdisney Hey Jonathan, I work at Hista too...this is D'Ambra. I had my day off Sunday and missed the blackout...didnt even know it happened unitl I read this post.
Originally Posted By nemopoppins Hi Jonathan. Thanks for the post. Are you just leaving Tomorrowland or are you leaving Disneyland? If leaving, will you be back next summer?
Originally Posted By jonathansportsc I am only going to be at Disneyland for a few more weeks, hoping that September 12 or so is my last day- I was only at DL for the summer. I do hope do go back to an office job later on. I actually have a 1 year gig in Japan coming up teaching English, to TDL is definitely in my future!! (if I am in the Chiba area) I was also a CT 3 years ago, and I did Storybook/parades, as well as guest control for Fantasmic, special events, and stroller patrol/parades. LPFan22--> I will look for someone with a camera!! I am sure that will stick out. If u are a regular HISTA/ Orbiter rider, it would be great to hear feedback on my Disney reference-filled spiels I do... And D'Ambra--> maybe I'll see ya over there at HISTA tomorrow. I don't know if u were there today or not, but I actually had a morning shift for the first time since training ( i think)... and my first parade in like 3 weeks. U know Erika left yesterday, right?
Originally Posted By TinksBestFriend Hi, Jonathan, I was in DL on Wednesday...but could not find anybody who was aware if you were working. No problem, I'll keep looking. I am a absolute POD freek so we probably have seen each other. Are you aware that "Peter Pan" will be working in TDL? I am not sure if he has left yet. I was in the park on Sunday and until you posted I had no idea there was a power failure - I was on Main Street watching POD. I am not sure when I'll be in DL next. Most likely early next week, so I'll be looking for you. I am not sure if I will have my camera. And D'Ambra, I will look for you too.
Originally Posted By dluvsdisney Jonathan, I'll probably see you Friday at Hista...I work in the afternoon...although I do have parades/pyro too. Yeah I did know it was Erika's last day...Friday is Elena's, and Bobby leaves sometime next week. TinksBestFriend, I hope you have a GREAT time at DL...maybe I'll see you there!
