Kuwait Entertainment City

Kuwait Entertainment City (Arabic: مدينة الكويت الترفيهية) is an amusement park located in the western outskirts of Kuwait City, the capital of Kuwait. It first opened on 14 March 1984 (1984-03-14)[1] and is one of several entertainment properties run by the Kuwait-based Touristic Enterprises Company. Some of the park's attractions, such as its large Bolliger & Mabillard inverted roller coaster and its 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge[2] railway, are common features in large-scale amusement parks in the United States, but are very rare in amusement parks in the Middle East. Starting on 6 June 2016, the park temporarily closed for renovations.[3] By July 2020, the park was under demolishment. [4]

Kuwait Entertainment City
The Tornado ride within the park
LocationDoha, Al Asimah, Kuwait
Operated byTouristic Enterprises Company
Opened14 March 1984 (1984-03-14)
Closed6 June 2016 (2016-06-06) (temporarily)
WebsiteOfficial website

Sections

The Arab World
International World
The Future World
Provincial Garden

Roller coasters
Name Manufacturer Opened Notes
Flying Dragon[5] Zierer 2007 Force - One model
Lightning[6] Bolliger & Mabillard 2004 Inverted model with five inversions;
only B&M in the Middle East as of 2013[7]
Oasis Express[8] Schwarzkopf 1984 Custom layout

Railway

Kuwait Entertainment City's narrow gauge railway and original train were built by the US-based company Crown Metal Products in the 1980s with a track gauge of 3 ft (914 mm).[9] The railway continues to operate, but now uses a train built by the UK-based company Severn Lamb. The locomotive is one of their 4-4-0 Lincoln models custom-built to fit on 3 ft (914 mm) gauge track (the Lincoln model is normally built for 2 ft (610 mm) gauge track).[10]

Iraqi military occupation

Kuwait Entertainment City has been open every year since its inaugural season, except for the period during and after Iraq's invasion and occupation of Kuwait beginning in 1990. From 1990 to 1991, Iraqi Forces took many of the park's rides and shipped them back to Iraq, while also pillaging and vandalizing the park's property.[11] Many of the stolen rides, including the park's Crown Metal Products locomotive and train cars, ended up in Al Zawra’a Dream Park, located in Downtown Baghdad.[12] After Iraqi forces were driven out of Kuwait and decisively defeated during Operation Desert Storm in 1991, the park began the process of recovery. It reopened to the public in 1994 until it closed for renovations on 6 June, 2016. Under demolishment as of July 2020, it is not clear if and when the park will ever reopen resembling its original form.

See also

References
  1. Roller Coaster Database - Kuwait Entertainment City
  2. Steamlocomotive.info - Kuwait Entertainment City
  3. https://rcdb.com/5128.htm
  4. https://248am.com/mark/kuwait/entertainment-city-getting-completely-demolished/
  5. Roller Coaster Database - Flying Dragon
  6. Roller Coaster Database - Lightning
  7. Roller Coaster Database - Bolliger & Mabillard
  8. Roller Coaster Database - Oasis Express
  9. "Crown Metal Products Locomotive Roster". Trainweb.
  10. "Lincoln model". Severn Lamb.
  11. Los Angeles Times - Rides Silent at Kuwaiti Park Iraqis Trashed, 27 March 1991
  12. Steamlocomotive.info - Al Zawra’a Dream Park
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