Just How Safe Are Carnival Rides?

[Mystic Wanderer]

Here we have yet another ride that could have ended up a lot worse.  Thank goodness there were no fatalities in this one. Of course, this guy was only 19, so he had a strong heart. I think anyone a wee bit older would have died from a heart attack; I think I would have.

Three carnival goers were left stranded in the air after a ride malfunctioned at the Ventura County Fair in California on Wednesday.
When a bungee cord ride involving a crane stopped working, one rider became stuck in the air and was left dangling for nearly 30 minutes until firefighters arrived on the scene. Two other men, Eddie Rodriguez, 25, and an unidentified fair worker, remained stuck in the steel cage above the crane for more than an hour as crews worked to get them down safely.
Roger Rodriguez, 19, was seen on video hanging by his ankles while firefighters extended a ladder to slowly bring him down to safety.

Rodriguez had no reported injuries or medical distress after he was brought down, fire department officials said.
Witnesses captured the incredible moment in a video later posted to Facebook, including Rodriguez's own account of the rescue.
"I remember I kept looking and could see the ladder coming towards me," Rodriguez said. "They must have loosened me up. I lied down on the ladder and the firefighter tried to unhook me and he let me catch my breath, wake me up a little bit, because I was on the verge of passing out. He told me to crawl down the ladder slowly."

Firefighters brought in ropes and harnesses and lowered the two people stranded in the ride's cage one at a time onto an inflatable landing pad.
Officials said they are investigating the cause of the bungee ride malfunction.

Source


I'm telling you, I see articles like this every summer; several of them.  Things just aren't made like they used to be, or, they are now so old that the parts are worn out.  It's not safe to go on thrill rides any longer. I know I won't be.