Woman ill after Disney ride dies from brain injury

A German woman who became ill this week after riding “Mission: Space” at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, died from bleeding of the brain, a medical examiner’s office said today.

Hiltrud Bleumel, 49, had severe, long standing high blood pressure, Orange-Osceola chief medical examiner Dr Jan Garavaglia said in a statement.

There was no evidence of trauma, she said.

The official cause of death will not be available for several weeks until tests of the victim’s brain, organs and toxicology reports are final, Garavaglia said.

Walt Disney World reopened its “Mission: Space” attraction on Thursday after engineers found it was operating properly – a day after Bleumel died at a local hospital.

State officials said Disney reported Bleumel was feeling dizzy and nauseous after her ride on Tuesday.

Disney spokeswoman Kim Prunty said the woman’s family did not want any information about her released.

Disney did not immediately comment on the autopsy.

A four-year-old Pennsylvania boy also died in June while riding “Mission: Space.”

Post mortem tests showed Daudi Bamuwamye died of an irregular heartbeat linked to a natural causes.

The boy had an abnormal thickening of the heart muscle that can throw heart contractions out of coordination.

People with the condition are at risk for sudden death throughout their lives, especially in physically or emotionally stressful situations, a medical examiner said.