‘No one was checking anything’: Terrifying moment packed ride collapses at fair and injures 14 school children
Chaos erupted at a crowded fair in India after a giant swing attraction collapsed mid-ride, leaving 14 school children injured.
The incident took place around 4pm local time on January 19 at the Maharaj No Melo fair in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, where local school children had packed onto the popular boat-style ride, known as the “Columbus Swing”.
Footage shows the moment the ride came crashing down only seconds after it begun and slams into a wall behind it, sending onlookers into a panicked frenzy.
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NDTV reports that at least 14 students were hurt in the accident, with two girls being rushed to the hospital after they sustained critical injuries.
Doctors said that the injured children are stable, however, the two girls with serious injuries remain under close observation, according to NDTV.
Eyewitnesses told local media that the swing looked dangerously overloaded, and far more children were allowed onto the ride than its safe capacity.
“It looked weak even before the accident,” one person said. “No one was checking anything. The swing just gave up.”
Superintendent of police Pratipal Singh Mahobia said based on preliminary findings, the ride had glaring lapses in safety.
“There appear to be serious deficiencies,” he said according to NDTV. “The material used seems weak, and overloading cannot be ruled out.”
District Collector Neha Meena has reportedly ordered a multi-departmental inquiry into the incident, with senior police officers and engineers from the Public Works Department and electricity board conducting the investigation.
The horrifying incident comes just over two weeks after 15 people were left stranded mid-air after a ride malfunctioned in Hong Kong.
On January 2, the Wild Twister ride at the Ocean Park Hong Kong theme park stopped working, leaving riders stuck on the ride for about 20 minutes.
A spokesperson said the issue was due to a signal failure that automatically triggered the safety system to halt the ride.
Thankfully, staff were able to shut the ride down, freeing the passengers from the terrifying ordeal.
