Two girls were injured after falling from a ferris wheel at a fairground in Louisiana on Saturday. The incident occurred during the Harvest Festival in New Roads, about 30 miles north-west of Baton Rouge, when the bucket they were seated in flipped over, throwing them to the ground.
Video posted to Facebook shows the compartment locked at almost 90 degrees to the ground, with police attending to a female at the base of the ride. Sheriff René Thibodeaux of Pointe Coupée parish confirmed both girls are under 13 and were airlifted to Baton Rouge children's hospital. Their condition is unknown but injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
Eyewitness Madison Fields told WBRZ News that one girl appeared to have severe facial injuries. “It caught on to the wires, and then it tilted over, and the two girls fell out,” she said. “I heard like a body, just like something falling, I heard a loud boom.”
The Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal is investigating and has allowed other rides to reopen after inspection. Sheriff Thibodeaux suggested the video indicates a possible mechanical failure. The incident is the latest in a series of amusement park accidents, including a rollercoaster incident in Missouri and a cable snap on a ride in Los Angeles in September.
