Thrill seekers at a Shanghai amusement park got more than they bargained for on Monday. 25 riders were left stranded more than 60 meters above the ground for half an hour after a roller-coaster malfunctioned. Although no was injured, the accident raises questions on the safety of park facilities.

It was a nightmare for the 25 people onboard a roller coaster at the Happy Valley park in Shanghai.

After the carriage reached its highest point, ready to plunge down, it came to a sudden stop.

Riders were stranded in the air for about half an hour...They finally used the emergency stairway to get down.

Though no one was injured, the psychological trauma was a terrifying experience that riders will hope to forget.

Rider of Shanghai Happy Valley, said, "There were a lot of people on board. It's hard to imagine that we had even intended to grab a front-row seat."

The park blamed the accident on bad weather. In an official statement, the park's management said cold and icy weather might cause the system to suspend operation.

Shanghai Happy Valley Staff said, "A sensor device on the coaster broke off by itself, generating a safety alert to suspend the machine from running automatically."

The accident is only the latest of several roller coaster failures in China's booming amusement and theme park industry, raising mounting safety concerns.

Last March, more than 30 people were stranded on the same diving coaster, after someone dropped a cellphone.

In 2009, a more tragic accident occurred at a Shenzhen theme park run by the same company, where six people died, and 10 others injured.

Happy Valley said the diving coaster is running again after Monday's short accident. But thrill seekers will have to think again before taking the adventure.

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