The Dutch maker of the fairground attraction which malfunctioned at a fair in Ohio in the US last month says the accident was due to a seriously corroded support beam.
In a letter published on the KMG Facebook page, product manager Albert Kroon says: ‘it was determined that excessive corrosion on the interior of the support beam dangerously reduced the beam’s thickness over the years.’ An 18-year-old youth was killed and seven people injured when the gondola flew off at high speed.
The company has now developed an ‘inspection protocol’ to allow other rides of a similar type made by the Dutch firm to be checked out and reopened. Two of the rides are in the Netherlands.
The ride at the Ohio fair was 18 years old, the company said.
The Fire Ball, sold by the company under the name Afterburner, is a mechanical ride that swings passengers up to 20 metres into the air while spinning at 15 revolutions per minute, according to the company’s website.
EXCLUSIVE: “I turned my head and couldn’t watch it.” Eyewitness, recalls what he saw at the Ohio State Fair: https://t.co/CQrROSX1zr pic.twitter.com/rD7HC5Wvtw
— Good Morning America (@GMA) July 27, 2017
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