October 18th 2024.
A terrifying incident unfolded at the Arkansas State Fair last Saturday, as a mother, Ally Metzger, watched helplessly as her eight and 11-year-old children were left dangling upside down on the X Drive Carnival Ride for a whopping 15 minutes. It all started when footage captured the moment two children were stranded on the fairground ride, with their legs dangling in the air.
Ally's heart raced as she stood by, unable to do anything to help her children. They had been on the ride for a few minutes when her daughter suddenly appeared to pass out, causing fair employees to rush to the scene in an attempt to fix the malfunctioning ride. Ally recalled the terrifying moment, saying, "I couldn't see her. Her eyes were closed. She told me when she came home that she only remembered crying, and then, like, just got dizzy. Her legs were hurting. I guess because the circulation was out."
As the employees frantically tried to get the ride to spin and bring the children down, Ally and her partner were consumed with panic. She described the chaotic scene, saying, "There's a bunch of people trying to get the ride to spin, and they would get it almost halfway down...then it would go right back up to the very top, with my kids still upside down. So, I'm panicking. My partner's panicking."
It wasn't until 15 agonizing minutes had passed that the children were finally rescued by staff. However, the damage had already been done, as Ally revealed that her children were left traumatized by the incident. In a Facebook post venting her frustration, she shared that her kids were stuck upside down for a frightening 15 minutes, and even other children on the ride were in shock.
Ally's anger towards the fair was evident as she wrote, "How do you build rides and not know how to successfully remove people when it shuts down?" She also called out a staff member named Chris, who had told her to "calm down" while her children were still in the air. She sarcastically added, "Oh, and special shout to the dummy Chris who told us to ‘calm down it’s only been 4 1/2 minutes.’ After what was spent to get in this place? RUN ME MY REFUND."
Thankfully, Ally's complaint against the fair resulted in a full refund for her family. The fair's owner, Scooter Korek, explained that the ride had stopped working due to a fault in the computer system. He clarified, "What it does is when it finds something that it doesn't like, it shuts it down. So, the ride was in the air, not in its landing position, for about 10-12 minutes."
Korek also assured that the evacuation process was carried out according to safety standards, and employees are trained to handle such situations. He stated, "We have a safety director and the Arkansas State Fair ride inspectors. We have the supervisors. They're looking at these rides. They travel with us wherever we go." He also mentioned that the company conducts regular third-party inspections and emphasized the importance of well-trained employees who must pass five safety inspection levels.
In the end, what could have been a tragic incident was averted, and Ally's children were safely brought down from the ride. However, the traumatic experience will surely be etched in their memories for a long time. It goes to show that a fun day out at the fair can quickly turn into a nightmare, and it's crucial for fair owners to prioritize the safety of their guests by conducting thorough inspections and training their employees effectively.
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