A 60-ton, 100-foot Sauroposeidon animatronic dinosaur at Field Station: Dinosaurs in Derby, Kansas, is no more. That’s because over the weekend, lightning struck the monstrous exhibit, turning it into a raging inferno.
“Units arrived to heavy fire showing from a three-story Sauroposeidon (meaning Earthquake God Lizard) Dinosaur,” the Derby Fire Department wrote on Facebook. “This Sauropod is the park’s largest herbivore from the early Cretaceous period with a total length of roughly 100ft, weighing nearly 60 tons!
“Crews were able to gain access and prevent the fire from spreading to other dinosaurs thus sparing an extinction level event. The fire was extinguished with automatic-aid from SCFD1 and Mulvane Fire. This is the first dinosaur fire Derby has experienced in 65 million years.”
Photos from the scene show the giant animatronic dinosaur engulfed in flames. After fire crews were able to extinguish the blaze, nothing was left but a sad metal frame.
“All of the motors and the mechanisms got burned, and 100% of the skin was burned off the dinosaur,” Guy Gazelle, executive producer at the theme park, told Fox News.
“People on the ground actually saw the lightning bolt,” Gazelle reported.
He said the park was closed at the time of the fire and no injuries were reported. Ironically, Gazelle said, “We just fixed it, and we were waiting to paint it, and then it got struck by lightning.”
On Wednesday, 12 News reported that the park has decided not to repair the damaged Sauroposeidon because the items they need come from China, and tariffs make it too expensive. Instead, they will create an educational exhibit around the dinosaur’s frame.
A brief history of animatronic dinosaurs bursting into flames
This isn’t the first time an animatronic dinosaur has caught fire. In 2018, an electrical malfunction was believed to have caused a life-size animatronic Tyrannosaurus Rex to burst into flames at the Royal Gorge Dinosaur Experience in Colorado.
Also, in 2011, an animatronic dinosaur at Kings Island in Ohio burst into flames. Despite the fire, the planned “Dinosaurs Alive!” attraction opened on time.