The Ohio State Fair Fire Ball ride claimed one young life after it malfunctioned while in operation. Tyler Jarell, 18, was the only fatality in the incident with several others badly injured including his 19-year-old girlfriend Keziah Lewis.
Fire Ball ride victim went under the knife three times and lost her boyfriend
When Lewis woke up in the hospital after a third surgery, she asked her mother, Clarissa Williams, 51, about her boyfriend and she reluctantly revealed to her the sad news.
Jarell had just enlisted in the Marines five days before the incident.
He was dropped to the ground from 50 feet in the air and the fall claimed his life immediately, Hollywood Life reported.
The Fire Ball ride malfunction caused a car to be detached which went flying into the air before it went down, pulling along the victims that fell on the concrete pavement. Lewis had injuries to her ankle, ribs, and pelvis. The most painful thing for her was the loss of her boyfriend who should have been there to comfort her after her operations. This was the second unfortunate incident in the life of the teenager at a fair as she was involved in a dragon ride accident when she was four.
CNN reported that the Ohio Division of Amusement Ride Safety had inspected the ride at different stages three or four times during the two-day period.
It passed all the inspections according to the chief ride inspector Michael Vartorella.
The Fire Ball ride accident is under investigation
The incident is under investigation by outside experts to determine the cause of the accident says Ohio State Highway Patrol Superintendent Col. Paul Pride.
The ride has at least six rows of seats that spin around in the air as the whole structure moves back and forth like a pendulum.
It broke apart with a full row of seats detached while in motion on Wednesday leaving witnesses stunned as they saw people dropping from the air.
Gov. John Kasich said that the incident was a nightmare but accidents do happen with no one to blame. He added that there is no guarantee of complete safety despite the fact that the ride passed various inspections.
Ohio Department of Agriculture Director David Daniels said that rides can fail from time to time because they are an assembly of mechanized pieces of equipment.
The maker of the Fire Ball ride, KMG advised the park operators to stop the ride and similar rides from operating as it investigates the incident. The Ohio State Fair will resume operations once the investigation is done.
