Air ambulance lands at Alton Towers and ride closed after visitor becomes seriously unwell

Th13teen is world’s first vertical free fall drop roller coaster and cost £15 million

Air ambulance lands at Alton Towers (Screengrab, Twitter)

An air ambulance has landed at Alton Towers after a thrill-seeker reportedly became seriously unwell while on a ride at the Staffordshire theme park.

Visitors were told to stay away from a grassy area while paramedics continued to treat the person on Monday afternoon.

The ride Th13teen – a £15 million vertical drop roller coaster – was closed off, while fire crews were also spotted at the park, it was reported.

Lizzie Roberts, spokeswoman for Alton Towers, confirmed to The Independent an incident was ongoing at 3.20pm on Monday.

She said: “The air ambulance was called to provide medical assistance to a guest who had fallen ill during their visit.

“This is common practice when support is requested. We would like to reassure our guests that this was unrelated to any of our rides or attractions.”

Asked what had happened to the person, she said it remained unclear. Their condition, too, remains unknown.

The rest of the park is open as normal, she added.

Th13teen, which opened in 2010, was the world’s first vertical free fall drop roller coaster. Guests on the ride plunge five metres in pitch black darkness.