CPSC NEISS · code 3295

Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides)

Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides): danger rank #482 of 838 is not ER-volume rank #295 of 838 (4,800 estimated ER visits a year; declining by about 17% over the last five years).

Sports Protective Equipment & Gear CPSC NEISS through 2024

Danger score versus ER volume

Danger score versus ER volume

According to CPSC NEISS 2005-2024, Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides) ranks #482 of 838 by danger score (34/100) at ER-volume #295 of 838 (4,800/yr). They are not the same ranking.

#482
danger rank of 838
#295
ER-volume rank of 838
34/100
danger score
4,800/yr
estimated ER visits (avg)

Danger score combines injury volume, hospitalization, fatality, and five-year trend. ER volume is the average annual NEISS estimate alone. Rank 1 is highest on each list.

Where this category's danger score sits nationally

Danger score (34/100) across 838 scored CPSC product categories

34 Lower than most lower than 57% of 838 product categories

scored CPSC product categories, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more product categories. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source CPSC NEISS, PlainSafety danger-score model · 2024

Composite verdict

Composite Safety Score: 28/100

One verdict blending 4 independently-sourced dimensions from two separate CPSC systems, each benchmarked against all 838 scored product categories by percentile rather than raw value, so no single huge-volume category can dominate the scale.

B
Dimension Value National percentile Weight applied Source
Injury severity (hospitalization + fatality blend) 2 12th 35% CPSC NEISS 20-year severity index
Annual ER injury volume 4,800 58th 30% CPSC NEISS estimated annual ER-treated injuries
5-year injury trend -17% 40th 15% CPSC NEISS 5-year % change in ER-treated injuries
Consumer incident reports 0 0th 20% CPSC SaferProducts.gov public incident report count

Methodology: each dimension is ranked against the full population's p10/p25/p50/p75/p90 breakpoints and interpolated to a 0-100 percentile; the composite is the weighted average of available percentiles. See methodology for the full benchmark table.

Where 96,028 estimated ER injuries land on the body

Body-part shares from the same CPSC NEISS injury_types extract for product code 3295. Segments sum to 96,028 - a body-map mix, not a danger score or ER-volume rank.

Two danger lenses

Same-group peer scores and this product's dial

The bars compare PlainSafety danger scores inside the Sports Protective Equipment & Gear group (same CPSC NEISS extract). The dial is this product's score alone on the Low/Moderate/High bands. Do not read a peer bar as an ER-visit count.

Sports Protective Equipment & Gear danger scores

1. All Terrain Vehicles (# O…54/1002. Mopeds Or Power-assisted …54/1003. Exercise (activity Or App…48/1004. Snow Skiing (activity, Ap…47/1005. All Terrain Vehicles (fou…46/1006. Exercise Equipment45/1007. Tennis (activity, Apparel…44/1008. Water Slides, Public (sta…34/100
Higher score = higher composite danger in this group. Peer set is other scored products sharing the same CPSC group.
0/100100/10034/100
PlainSafety danger score · Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides)

Source: CPSC NEISS danger-score model As of 2024

How this 34/100 score is built

The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) - no opinion, no editorializing:

  • Injury volume 4,800 ER visits/yr Above median volume
  • Severity (hospitalization rate) 1.8% Low admission rate
  • Fatality rate 0.00% No recorded fatalities
  • 5-year trend-17%

Band labels compare this category against the corpus of 838 scored CPSC product categories, see the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.

What the CPSC Data Shows

Across the 20-year NEISS window from 2005 to 2024, injury counts for water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) are declining by about 17% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2015 (7,222 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2020 (2,130 estimated visits). The single most common ER diagnosis is internal injury to the head, accounting for approximately 12,195 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by laceration to the face (8,479 cases). The 5-14 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 42,013 cases over the NEISS window, and males appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 1.8% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.

Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 0 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.

Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)

02K4K6K8K 20052008201120142017202020232024 5K
Estimated annual emergency-room visits for Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides), CPSC NEISS

Source: CPSC NEISS national injury estimates As of 2024

Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only

Who Gets Injured?

Age Group Male Female Total
0-4 7,914 5,236 13,150
5-14 22,577 19,429 42,013
15-24 4,267 9,299 13,566
25-34 3,390 6,995 10,385
35-44 4,539 5,063 9,602
45-54 1,880 2,827 4,707
55-64 937 1,175 2,112
65-74 305 154 459

Most Common Injuries

Body Part Diagnosis Est. Injuries
Head Internal Injury 12,195
Face Laceration 8,479
Ear Other 4,853
Head Concussion 4,624
Ankle Strain, Sprain 3,424
Neck Strain, Sprain 3,368
Lower Trunk Strain, Sprain 2,455
Knee Strain, Sprain 2,009
Mouth Laceration 2,002
Upper Trunk Contusions, Abr. 1,971
Head Contusions, Abr. 1,839
Lower Trunk Other 1,827
Face Contusions, Abr. 1,752
Head Laceration 1,743
Foot Strain, Sprain 1,735

Severity Breakdown

Treated/examined And Released 97.3% (93,392)
Treated And Admitted/hospitalized 1.5% (1,481)
Left Without Being Seen 0.6% (567)
Treated And Transferred 0.4% (406)
Held For Observation 0.2% (182)

ER Visit Narratives

Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.

Age 2 · Female · Face · Laceration · 2024

2YOF SLIPPED ON BABY WATER SLIDE & HIT HER CHIN. NO LOC. DX: LACERATION CHIN

Age 6 · Male · Head · Concussion · 2024

6YOM PRESENTS TO ED W/MOTHER FOR EVAL AFTER HEAD INJURY. FRIDAY HE WAS IN *** AT A RESORT, WAS ON A WATER SLIDE WHEN HE COLLIDED W/ANOTHER CHILD.THEY STRUCK HEADS.NO LOC.SINCE THEN PT HAS HAD NUMEORUS EPISODES OF VOMITING,& PERIODS OF SPACING OUT.HAS DEVELOPED A HEMATOMA ON HIS FOREHEAD. DX: CONCUSSION

Age 2 · Female · Ear · Other · 2024

2YOF WAS GOING DOWN WATERSLIDE AT WATER PARK AND DEVELOPED PAN IN LEFT EAR DX:OTITIS EXTERNA

Age 16 · Male · Ear · Other · 2024

16YOM STATES THAT HE WAS GOING DOWN A WATER SLIDE AT THE WATER PARK WHEN HE SUDDENLY DEVELOPED PAIN IN RIGHT EAR DX: RIGHT OTITIS MEDIA

Age 12 · Male · Head · Internal Injury · 2024

12YOM WAS GOING DOWN A WATER SLIDE AND STRUCK HEAD DX: CLOSED HEAD INJURY

Age 2 · Male · Foot · Other · 2024

2YOM WAS GOING DOWN A WATER SLIDE AT THE WATER PARK AND STRUCK LEFT FOOT DX: LEFT FOOT INJURY

Age 2 · Male · Lower Leg · Fracture · 2024

2YOM WAS PLAYING ON A *** IN THE BACKYARD WHEN HE FELL DX: FRACTURED LEFT LOWER LEG

Age 12 · Male · Pubic Region · Other · 2024

12YOM PT C/O SHOOTING LEFT SIDE TESTICULAR PAIN AFTER SPENDING A DAY @ WATER PARK DX: LEFT TESTICULAR PAIN, CYST OF EPIDIDYMIS

Age 13 · Female · Finger · Strain, Sprain · 2024

13YOF WAS CLIMBING UP THE STEPS OF A WATER SLIDE AT THE WATER PARK AND FELL TWISTING RIGHT THUMB DX: STRAINED FINGER

Age 218 · Male · Lower Leg · Fracture · 2024

18MOM WAS PLAYING ON A WATER *** AT THE PARK WHEN HE FELL DX: FRACTURED RIGHT LOWER LEG

Age 22 · Male · Face · Laceration · 2024

22 YOM WENT DOWN A WATERSLIDE AT A WATER PARK. WHILE GOING DOWN THE SLIDE HE COLLIDED WITH ANOTHER PERSON. DX:LEFT EYEBROW LACERATION

Age 25 · Male · Foot · Contusions, Abr. · 2024

25YOM WAS IN *** A COUPLE DAYS AGO GOING DOWN A WATER SLIDE STRUCK HIS LEFT FOOT CONTINUED PAIN DX: CONTUSION FOOT

Product Recalls

Search for active and past recalls related to water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) on the CPSC website.

Compare beyond Sports Protective Equipment & Gear

Nationwide peers by danger score, ER volume & hospitalization

Three PlainSafety-derived comparison paths for Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides): cross-group products nearest on danger score (34/100), estimated annual ER visits (4,800/yr), and hospitalization share (1.8%). Same-group neighbours stay in Related Products above.

Read with this product

About this data

CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports form the basis of this page. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments.

According to PlainSafety's CPSC NEISS corpus ranking, Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides) ranks #482 of 838 scored CPSC product categories by PlainSafety danger score and #295 of 838 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) rank on danger score versus ER volume?

Among 838 scored CPSC product categories, water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) ranks #482 by PlainSafety danger score (34/100) and #295 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume (4,800/yr). The two rankings come from the same NEISS extract and are not the same order.

What are the most common injuries from water slides, public (stationary amusement rides)?

The most common injury is internal injury to the head, accounting for approximately 12,195 injuries over 20 years.

Are injuries from water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) increasing or decreasing?

Down 17% over 5 years.

Who is most at risk for water slides, public (stationary amusement rides) injuries?

The 5-14 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 42,013 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.

What happens when someone is injured by water slides, public (stationary amusement rides)?

Of all ER visits involving water slides, public (stationary amusement rides), approximately 1.8% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (98.2%) are treated and released from the emergency department.

How can I report a safety problem with water slides, public (stationary amusement rides)?

You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.

Data on Water Slides, Public (stationary Amusement Rides) is compiled directly from CPSC NEISS and SaferProducts.gov records, current through 2024. See our methodology for details.

Disclaimer: This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.

PlainSafety is rendered directly from U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recall and incident records, no number is typed in by an editor. Product recall timelines and hazard labels are drawn from CPSC recall records for this product. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.