Illinois Woman Falls From Carnival Roller Coaster, Reports Say

Stock photo of police tape. Carl Ballou/Shutterstock

A woman reportedly fell from a roller coaster at an Illinois carnival ride last week, according to reports.

“It happened so fast,” Plainfield Fire Chief Jon Stratton told the Herald-News. “We were 50 feet away; we heard a noise and saw her fall out.”

The incident occurred at Plainfield Fest, which is a private event for people with special needs. The 45-year-old victim fell from the ride onto the asphalt on July 18, said officials.

She suffered minor injuries and was taken to Edward Emergency Department-Plainfield before she was released later in the day, Stratton added.

He said she fell about 5 feet onto the ground below.

“We got one lap around, and on the second lap things started to feel really unstable,” Justin Williams, who also went on the ride, told the paper. “It felt like we sloped inward and crashed down. To my left side, I saw a woman fly by me.”

Williams said his two daughters were “traumatized” following the mishap, adding that he was taken to the hospital.

Police said the ride had a broken track and caused the roller coaster’s final car to get loose, NBC5 reported.

The roller coaster’s other riders were later removed, and some were taken off the ride via a portable latter. There were no other injuries, the report said.

“All these kids were pretty shook up,” Stratton told the Herald. “It was a little crazy.”

The Illinois Department of Labor, Amusement Ride, and Attraction Safety Division are now investigating the incident.

Additional details about the incident are not clear.

Carnival Ride Breaks in Half

A carnival ride in an adventure park dramatically broke into half, killing two and injuring 27 in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad on July 14.

The ride, shaped like a hammer, was carrying 30 people when the main beam holding the seats broke into half as people were mid-air, reported New Delhi Television (NDTV).

“Twenty-nine people were brought to the hospital out of whom two died while twenty-seven are being treated,” Ahmedabad Mayor Bijal Patel told Ahmedabad Mirror, a local media.

According to the Press Trust of India, police identified those killed as a 24-year-old girl, Manali Rajwadi, and a 22-year-old man, Mohammad Javed.

“There are 32 seats in the ride that go round. The pipe of the main shaft broke and crashed on the ground. How that pipe broke is a matter of investigation by Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL),” Chief Fire Officer MF Dastoor told Indian wire services.

The accident happened just a few minutes after the ride left the ground at the Kankaria Adventure Park, according to Times Now News.

While police have launched an investigation, 14 people are reported to be critically injured.

Epoch Times reporter Venus Upadhayaya contributed to this article.