The original Tower of Terror's restraint system consisted of a thick, rigid lap bar with hand grips mounted to the lap bar. Smaller jockey wheels run on the other side of the track such that the track sits between the pairs of wheels. The car was equipped with four large steel road wheels that run on the track, measuring 600 millimetres (24 in) in diameter at the front and 900 millimetres (35 in) at the rear. The first steel passenger vehicle, known as the Escape Pod, would carry 15 passengers in four rows and weighed around 6 metric tons (5.9 long tons 6.6 short tons). The original Escape Pod launching up the Dreamworld Tower. Just 0.25 seconds after the initial launch, an on-ride camera would take photographs of riders. Riders would then complete the thematic "escape" by travelling down a lift to safety. The car then returned along the track backwards under the force of gravity and was slowed by electromagnets as it re-entered the tunnel. Riders would be launched forwards out of a shorter, 80-metre (260 ft) tunnel at a rate of 160.9 kilometres per hour (100.0 mph) before travelling up the 115-metre (377 ft) tower. Upon reaching the front of the queue, 15 riders boarded the "escape pod". Whilst the optical illusion and decoration of the queuing area remains, the backstory of the ride was no longer given. Riders took the role of people queuing for the escape pods through the corridors and stairwells of the building, at one point crossing a depth illusion giving the impression of being high above a ruined city. Earthquakes had supposedly made the building unstable and unexplained nuclear hazards were contaminating the building. The original Tower of Terror ride was themed as an "escape pod" launch from a futuristic skyscraper to a distant building. A plaque was dedicated in its honour detailing its opening status as the tallest and fastest ride in the world. On 23 January 1997, the Tower of Terror was officially opened by Rob Borbidge, Premier of Queensland at the time. Total construction costs were estimated to be A$16 million. The ride features more than 600 metric tons (590 long tons 660 short tons) of steel, 3,500 metric tons (3,400 long tons 3,900 short tons) of concrete (which was delivered by 175 concrete trucks), 3,500 litres (770 imp gal 920 US gal) of paint and over 16,000 bolts which hold the structure together. The construction of the Tower of Terror required a mammoth effort by those involved. The park also confirmed that The Giant Drop will continue to operate as normal, with the Tower of Terror II track being removed from the Dreamworld Tower structure over time. On 24 October 2019, the park announced that the Tower of Terror II would close on 3 November the same year, to make room for future development and expansion to the park. As of 2010, the ride was 4th in the tallest roller coaster rankings, 3rd in the tallest roller coaster drop rankings and 4th in the fastest roller coaster rankings. It propels passengers to just under 161 kilometres per hour (100 mph) with a maximum of 4.5 g and 6.5 seconds of weightlessness. The original ride featured a shorter, 80-metre (260 ft) tunnel, a rigid lap bar using a hydraulic locking system, and would carry 15 passengers at a time. The steel and concrete structure cost A$16 million to construct. The ride was originally known as the Tower of Terror until it was modified and relaunched in September 2010 as Tower of Terror II. The ride was situated on the Dreamworld Tower, which also houses The Giant Drop free fall ride. When the Tower of Terror opened on 23 January 1997, it was the first roller coaster in the world to reach 100 miles per hour (160 km/h), making it the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world of its time. The Tower of Terror II was a steel shuttle roller coaster located at the Dreamworld amusement park on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.
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