One dead, five critically hurt after thrown from ride at Ohio fair

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

#U.S.
JULY 26, 2017 / 9:21 PM / 4 MINUTES AGO

One dead, five critically hurt after thrown from ride at Ohio fair

(Reuters) - One person was killed and five others critically injured at the Ohio State Fair on Wednesday when they were flung into air after their seats snapped off a ride that hoists and spins people, fire officials told local media.

The accident at the fair, which opened on Wednesday in Columbus, occurred when a section of open-air seating snapped off a "Fireball" ride, TV station WCMH said.

The seats are in a circular configuration and at the end of an arm that lifts riders as they are being spun.

The person killed was an 18-year-old man, the station reported.

The man who died was thrown into the air and landed about 50 feet (15 m) from the ride, the Columbus Dispatch reported a fire official as saying. Names of the person killed and those injured have not been released.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ohio-ride-idUSKBN1AC04T

[jberryhill]

1. The ride in question

[we can do it]

4. Looks like new ride at Funland.

[dalton99a]

2. Video:

http://www.wkbw.com/news/national/1-dead-after-fireball-ride-malfunctions-at-state-fair-in-ohio-report-says

[JI7]

3. Fucking horrible

[NightWatcher]

5. Have you seen the people who operate these rides?

What masterful safety do you expect from a bunch of meth heads who throw the ride up 200 times a yr.

[TexasBushwhacker]

7. I would never go on those "temporary" rides

Setting up and taking down dozens of times a year. Being transported all over the country. Too many things to go wrong.

[spanone]

8. and little regulation/inspectors

[sarah FAILIN]

9. They set these things up using flashlights

Not joking. I've seen it done many times.

[cwydro]

15. Me either.

Even as a child, I just passed on most rides.

[sinkingfeeling]

6. I went every year to the Ohio State Fair as a kid. My best friend and I

rode all the rides and would spend an entire day there. That was back in the 60s.

Terrible thing to have happened. Seems like there's a major ride failure every year now days.

[teenagebambam]

10. My dad worked the fair all through the 70's and 80's

We were never allowed to ride the rides, because he said the ride operators would go hire kids off the street and pay them in snacks and quarters to climb the rides and tighten bolts

[Purveyor]

11. Every year, every year...somewhere. You won't find me on anything faster than the bumper-cars...nt

[tenderfoot]

12. Horrifying...

[mahatmakanejeeves]

13. Adding links:

Man killed, seven injured by malfunctioning ride at Ohio State Fair

By Jim Woods
The Columbus Dispatch

Posted at 12:01 AM
Updated at 5:59 AM

UPDATE: Emergency calls from the Ohio State Fair after a ride broke apart described the severity of one victim’s injuries.

The caller told a dispatcher that one person suffered a head injury and was unresponsive.

Dispatchers with Columbus Division of Fire received four calls after the amusement park ride called the Fire Ball broke apart at the Ohio State Fair just before 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

An 18-year-old man, Tyler Jarrell, of Reynoldsburg, was killed and seven others were injured as a result of the accident when the amusement ride fell apart. He was thrown high into the air and landed on the ground about 50 feet from the ride. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The other injured riders were transported to local hospitals.

“They’re telling us at the gate the ride fell apart and there’s multiple injuries there,” the caller said. She described the ride as the “scrambler,” and told paramedics to come through gate 3.
....

>> Join the conversation at Facebook.com/columbusdispatch and connect with us on Twitter @DispatchAlerts
....

Dispatch Reporter Megan Henry contributed to this story.

[e-mail]

@WoodsNight

There was this comment:

Peter Soehnlen

The State of Ohio, primarily due to the existence of Cedar Point to the north and Kings Island to the south together with small parks located throughout the state and 88 county fairs held throughout the spring, summer and fall has one of the strictest and thorough amusement ride inspection regimens in the country. Every one of the nationally certified ride inspectors employed by the state is on hand in Columbus at State Fair time.

I watched the 6 second video multiple times, read and listened to the state officials and spoke with an individual who is a certified amusement ride inspector (not a State of Ohio employee). His conclusion from what he observed was that a structural failure likely occurred causing a four chair seat assembly to separate from it's spoke and it in turn was struck by an adjacent seat assembly. The failure occurred at the point where torque and stress between spoke and chair assembly would be the greatest.

Word is that the State of California officials have ordered that Fire Ball rides in that state cease operation. Such action is a strong indication that a manufacturing issue is likely. It should be noted that a former (retired) Ohio official is in California working as an 'independent' inspector.

It would not surprise me were we to hear of Fire Ball rides to be closed in other states throughout the day.

39 minutes ago

California: The Amusement Ride and Tramway Unit

The Amusement Ride and Tramway (ART) Unit is responsible under Labor Code sections 7340-7357 and 7900-7932 for the following:

Temporary (portable) amusement rides (TAR)
Inspecting and issuing permits to operate temporary amusement rides
The TAR regulations are in Title 8, sections 3900-3920.

Permanent amusement rides (PAR)

{snip}

NC Department of Labor issues moratorium on some fair rides after deadly Ohio ride malfunction

Updated 2 hrs 19 mins ago

RALEIGH, North Carolina (WTVD) -- The North Carolina Department of Labor tells ABC11 that they will issue moratorium on all KMG Fire Ball rides in the state after Wednesday's Ohio State Fair tragedy.
....

The North Carolina Department of Labor said the exact ride was in operation in the Charlotte area just 2 and a half months ago.

NC Dept of Labor says this exact ride was in operation in Charlotte area 2 1/2 mos ago. #ABC11

Link to tweet

/

[gratuitous]

14. Thank you for that information

It will be vital to keep informed on the details as the investigation goes on. The story I heard this morning said that ride had just passed inspection before it flew apart. I'm sure the investigators will be looking at every aspect of this terrible event (as well they should).

That being said, this should be yet another argument against the short-sighted program by the Trump administration (aided and abetted by Republicans in both houses of Congress) to roll back federal regulations. Those regulations are in place for a reason, often having to do with someone being killed in a gruesome manner like this ride in Ohio.