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Transformers ride suffers disruption on opening day

After a successful launch on Friday night, Transformers: The Ride experienced a technical delay on Saturday afternoon.

When contacted, a spokesperson from Resorts World Sentosa told Yahoo! Singapore that the "brief technical delay" occurred around 2:45pm and the ride resumed normal operations at Universal Studios Singapore (USS) about 45 minutes later.

"Guests in the queue at the time were asked to exit and enjoy our other attractions while the cause of the delay was assessed," he said. No guests were in danger or injured when the disruption occurred, he added.

The spokesperson declined to reveal the reasons for the 45-minute disruption, although Yahoo! Singapore understands it was not a safety issue.

“This is a highly technological ride and we have been pleased with its reliability,” said the spokesperson. “We look forward to welcoming even more guests who wish to be part of the ultimate 3D battle.”

According to The Sunday Times, which first reported the glitch, visitors had started queuing for the ride outside USS at 9am, an hour before it opened. By 11am, the waiting time for the highly-anticipated ride was up to two-and-a-half hours.

Other rides at USS have also previously encountered problems. The Battlestar Galactica duelling rollercoaster ride faced safety concerns and was closed for nearly a year, while the Madagascar: A Crate Adventure ride was closed for 20 minutes after a guest exited in the wrong direction.

The Transformers ride is the first in the world that is based on the Transformers trilogy of movies.

Apart from visuals and a complex track system, the ride also includes tangible effects, with visitors feeling water, heat and wind while on it.

Transformers director Michael Bay worked as a creative consultant on the ride, while Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light and Magic, the same company that worked with Bay on the three movies, handled motion graphics and special effects.

Another identical Transformers ride will be opened in Universal Studios Hollywood by May next year.

[Read more about the ride here, and see photos of the launch event and ride here.]