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After a fortnight of damning evidence into the tragic deaths of four Dreamworld attendees in 2016 the CEO of the theme park has resigned.
The parent company of Dreamworld, Ardent Leisure, has also announced a major restructure of the management of its troubled theme park on the Gold Coast.
Craig Davidson, the now former-CEO of Dreamworld, was in charge of the company at the time of the Thunder River Rapids ride disaster. A worldwide search is now underway to find his replacement.
Gary Weiss, the chairman of parent company Ardent Leisure, announced the management overhaul on Sunday, and has appointed Nicole Noye as acting CEO of Dreamworld in the interim period.
Noye will have the support of Phil Tanner as director of safety and former Queensland Police Inspector Mike McKay as director for culture, community and external relations.
These appointments come at a pivotal time for the company which is going through a PR disaster as the inquest into the 2016 disaster continues.
Weiss says the company has a lot to learn from what is coming out of the coronial inquest.
"I have been deeply concerned by what has emerged from the inquiry over the past fortnight, and this is why it is important that we listen to the evidence, understand all we can and apply the lessons learned to ensure such accidents never occur at our park," says Weiss.
"I can assure the public that our focus on safety improvements and enhancement has been ongoing for some time and the new executive appointments will continue to drive that process."
The theme park operator has also promised to commit to the implementation of all the recommendations made by the coronial inquest.
Dreamworld, and the wider community of theme parks on the Gold Coast, have suffered following the accident in October 2016 and the park's 45-day shutdown.
Ardent has continued to suffer financially, reporting a first-half net loss of $15.6 million in February 2018. This loss is a significant improvement from the loss of $49.3 million a year earlier.
Shares in Ardent Leisure closed at $1.98 on Friday afternoon.
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Business News Australia
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