Florida fairgoers got stuck upside-down on a ride that malfunctioned on the state fair Friday in a “nightmare” situation that left them thankful to be alive.
The Ferris wheel-type ride, which features enclosed carriages that swing and flip upside-down, slowed down as a consequence of its safety mechanism acting up — which caused a few of the carts to get stuck upside-down as riders held on “for dear life,” in line with patrons and local news station WFLA.
The attraction, called the Enterprise, doesn’t have safety belts and a few riders said they feared they might fall through the open-air carriages as they waited as much as a half hour to be rescued.
“The ride … malfunctioned on us, leaving us stuck in midair the wrong way up, no seat belts with gaps large enough to lose grip and fall,” Alexis Cresong shared on Facebook. “We were hanging on for dear life to the bars as they got us down, without knowing what was to come back.”
The Enterprise normally moves at a speed during which the centrifugal force keeps riders pinned to their seats, in line with the NBC-affiliate station. Without the momentum, patrons were left falling inside the carriages and grabbing onto the bars.
Cresong said she thanked god she got home protected, calling the Florida State Fair “an absolute nightmare.”
“I actually can’t describe the way it felt to see your life flash before your eyes,” she added. “God was definitely with us. I’m definitely holding my baby closer tonight.”
One other woman who had been trapped on the ride along with her terrified children said she suffered bruises while being knocked around within the Ferris wheel cart.
“im [sic] a little bit bruised the children were traumatized .. but we’ve our life it might have been a unique ending” Janine Chantelle wrote on Facebook and attached photos of her black-and-blued arm and leg.
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The mom also shared a video she took while stuck high above the park grounds on the ride as she held onto her young son Noah.
The frightened child began crying on the ride as they waited to be brought down.
“I promise I’m going to be a great boy for the remainder of my life,” Noah said within the heartbreaking video. “I promise everybody.”
The video shows several employees moving the ride by hand as they worked to get everyone off. Two employees on a cherry picker truck help two girls off one other cart onto the platform of the raised cherry picker.
The boy then said he was comfortable his sisters are OK as employees send their carriage back up higher in an effort to keep the ride balanced with the number of individuals onboard.
“Mommy, my legs, my arms are slipping,” Noah cries out because the pair grips the bars of the cart high above the bottom.
“I got you, son,” Chantelle assured her son. “As soon as those people get off, they’ll allow us to back down, OK? A pair more seconds.”
The manager of the Florida State Fair told WFLA that the security mechanisms of the Enterprise were activated, which caused the ride to shut down “as designed.”
“We swiftly began exiting guests from the ride, in probably the most protected and timely manner,” said Frank Zaitshik, owner of Wade Shows and midway manager of the state fair. “All safety and emergency protocols were followed. An intensive inspection can be conducted into what triggered the security mechanisms.”
The ride remained closed for the rest of the state fair “out of an abundance of caution,” Zaitshik said.
Florida fairgoers got stuck upside-down on a ride that malfunctioned on the state fair Friday in a “nightmare” situation that left them thankful to be alive.
The Ferris wheel-type ride, which features enclosed carriages that swing and flip upside-down, slowed down as a consequence of its safety mechanism acting up — which caused a few of the carts to get stuck upside-down as riders held on “for dear life,” in line with patrons and local news station WFLA.
The attraction, called the Enterprise, doesn’t have safety belts and a few riders said they feared they might fall through the open-air carriages as they waited as much as a half hour to be rescued.
“The ride … malfunctioned on us, leaving us stuck in midair the wrong way up, no seat belts with gaps large enough to lose grip and fall,” Alexis Cresong shared on Facebook. “We were hanging on for dear life to the bars as they got us down, without knowing what was to come back.”
The Enterprise normally moves at a speed during which the centrifugal force keeps riders pinned to their seats, in line with the NBC-affiliate station. Without the momentum, patrons were left falling inside the carriages and grabbing onto the bars.
Cresong said she thanked god she got home protected, calling the Florida State Fair “an absolute nightmare.”
“I actually can’t describe the way it felt to see your life flash before your eyes,” she added. “God was definitely with us. I’m definitely holding my baby closer tonight.”
One other woman who had been trapped on the ride along with her terrified children said she suffered bruises while being knocked around within the Ferris wheel cart.
“im [sic] a little bit bruised the children were traumatized .. but we’ve our life it might have been a unique ending” Janine Chantelle wrote on Facebook and attached photos of her black-and-blued arm and leg.
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The mom also shared a video she took while stuck high above the park grounds on the ride as she held onto her young son Noah.
The frightened child began crying on the ride as they waited to be brought down.
“I promise I’m going to be a great boy for the remainder of my life,” Noah said within the heartbreaking video. “I promise everybody.”
The video shows several employees moving the ride by hand as they worked to get everyone off. Two employees on a cherry picker truck help two girls off one other cart onto the platform of the raised cherry picker.
The boy then said he was comfortable his sisters are OK as employees send their carriage back up higher in an effort to keep the ride balanced with the number of individuals onboard.
“Mommy, my legs, my arms are slipping,” Noah cries out because the pair grips the bars of the cart high above the bottom.
“I got you, son,” Chantelle assured her son. “As soon as those people get off, they’ll allow us to back down, OK? A pair more seconds.”
The manager of the Florida State Fair told WFLA that the security mechanisms of the Enterprise were activated, which caused the ride to shut down “as designed.”
“We swiftly began exiting guests from the ride, in probably the most protected and timely manner,” said Frank Zaitshik, owner of Wade Shows and midway manager of the state fair. “All safety and emergency protocols were followed. An intensive inspection can be conducted into what triggered the security mechanisms.”
The ride remained closed for the rest of the state fair “out of an abundance of caution,” Zaitshik said.
