Alton Towers Toxicator: UK theme park new ride closes on opening day after 'spraying raw sewage'

Thrill-seekers turned up to the theme park, near Stoke-on-Trent, on Saturday 15 March to sample the latest attraction - the Toxicator. Bosses shared plans for the ride on January 13 of this year.

The Toxicator stands at 78ft tall and is the only top spin in the world that's elevated above ground level, creating an experience where spectators can watch the ride from under it. But fans were forced to temper their excitement after an issue emerged on Saturday.

Disgruntled customers took to social media to complain to Alton Towers about the incident. Ben Keable said: "@altontowers what is going on today?”. Another added: "Alton Towers just had a toxic event on their new toxicator ride started spraying raw sewage onto people in the queue."

The brand new ride was forced to close when eyewitnesses claimed to spot a brown liquid leaking at the entrance of the ride. An official at the theme park told Mirror affiliate the Manchester Evening News that the ride needed to be temporarily paused for a clean-up operation. The official added: "People were allowed back on in less than an hour."

Eyewitnesses said the leak prompted an "evacuation of the ride area". Another jokingly described the shut down as being due to a "toxic incident".