Dollywood forced to close Wednesday only an hour after opening: 'We sincerely apologize'

PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. (WATE) — Dollywood is reopening as scheduled on Thursday after an unexpected incident forced the Pigeon Forge park to close shortly after opening on Wednesday.

Dollywood informed guests of the park's closure sometime around 11 a.m. — which is only an hour after the park opened — due to a water main break, a representative for the park said on social media.

"Dollywood maintenance teams and City of Pigeon Forge crews are on scene to repair the break," reads a statement posted by the park on Wednesday.

A photo from inside Dollywood appeared to show visitors being directed away from a pool of water near the park's entrance. One guest who captured a video clip jokingly called the puddle a "new water feature."

The park was temporarily closed for the remainder of Wednesday.

Early on Thursday morning, Dollywood confirmed it would be operating as normal on Thursday, and apologized to guests affected by the issue. Additionally, all tickets, parking receipts, locker receipts and TimeSaver passes from July 17 are eligible for use at a later visit, the park confirmed. A spokesperson for Dollywood told Nexstar's WATE that guests can also request refunds for Wednesday's purchases by calling 1-800-DOLLYWOOD.

"We sincerely apologize to all guests who were impacted by the water main break. The closure prevented us from creating memories worth repeating for you and your families yesterday, and we want to make it right," reads a statement posted to the park's social media accounts.

Dollywood said the closure had not affected Dollywood's Splash County or Dollywood resort properties.