Velcro straps concerned boy who rode same slide that Caleb Schwab, 10, died on days later

A 12-year-old boy who rode the same water slide that killed 10-year-old Caleb Schwab, just three days earlier, has said that he was only secured by velcro on the dangerous ride.

"I was kind of shocked," Noah Boganowski told People of his experience on the Verrückt water slide at Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, Kansas.

"I thought there would be belts holding us in but instead it was just velcro," he says. "It was across your chest and across your legs. You would just stick the velcro to the other piece."

While riding the steep slide – which is part of the tallest water park in the world - the 12-year-old remembers feeling as though the velcro could have come loose.

At least two other people have come forward with stories of their velco straps doing just that - snapping or coming off - while on the ride reports the Associated Press.

Another man took to twitter to share his experience on the Verrückt - which means " insanity" in German - admitting that he felt it should have been a seatbelt restraint rather than velcro. "I assumed they knew what they were doing," he tweeted.

According to Noah's mother, Liz, her son strapped himself in to the Verrückt– something, she adds, that wasn't double-checked by the ride operator to ensure it was done correctly.

In addition, Noah says that despite the stringent weight, age and height restrictions for the water slide, park employees did not ask him for his age or height.

"They didn't ask you anything like that," he notes.

Adds his mother, "The first thing [Noah] said to me was 'That could have been me, Mom.' He said he will never go on that kind of ride again.

"As a parent when you hear it's velcro and the history of the ride and how there were safety concerns, it's scary."

Dr. Kenneth Solomon of the Institute of Risk & Safety Analysis expressed concern that the ride – which features a 17-story drop - only employed velcro as a restraint.

That's a definite no-no," he told People. "Velcro is not good for force that pulls outward. It also doesn't secure well and most importantly if there is any kind of debris in the velcro material it would affect the ability to adhere."

At this stage, the cause of Caleb Schwab's fatal neck injury – sustained on the 168-foot-ride - remains unknown.

"It's being investigated as a criminal case," said Police spokesman Cameron Morgan, "but we are not saying something criminal happened."

Caleb will be farewelled by family and friends, including his parents, Republican state Rep. Scott Schwab and his wife Michele, at his funeral on Friday.

The slide will remain closed for the rest of the season.