13 injured on Connecticut fair ride
NORWALK, Conn. (AP) – Authorities say 12 children were injured when a ride at a Connecticut fair suddenly stopped, sending its riders crashing into each other.
Norwalk police say a dozen children and one adult were transported to hospitals after the rotating swing ride at the city’s Oyster Festival came to a sudden stop Sunday afternoon. All but one were treated and released.
Officials did not release the age of the lone victim hospitalized, whose injuries were not life-threatening. State police say a mechanical failure caused the ride to stop, which sent its occupants careening into each other. They say no riders were ejected from the ride or fell to the ground. Troopers with state police fire and explosion unit are investigating the cause of the failure.
Other rides were briefly halted for inspection.
The festival’s organizer, the nonprofit Norwalk Seaport Association, said it directed the ride’s operator, Stewart Amusement, to shut down the entire ride area until state inspectors completed a check. The other rides later reopened and the rest of the festival remained open on its third and final day.
Stewart Amusement didn’t immediately return phone and email messages seeking comment. Its rides are inspected by its own staff every day, by state and local inspectors weekly and by engineers and insurance inspectors each year, the company’s website said.
“Your safety is of critical importance to us,” the site says. “Not only do we have an obligation to provide our guests with the safest equipment and environment possible, but also our ultimate success depends on it.”