8 Injured in Roller Coaster Collision at Fair

Eight people were injured at the Orange County Fair on Monday night when two roller coaster cars collided after the ride operator apparently failed to activate the brakes.

One of the cars on the popular Cyclone ride was being loaded about 11:30 p.m. when another car crashed into it. The occupants of the moving car were tossed back in their seats, then slammed against the safety bars. They suffered back, neck and abdominal injuries.

Four of the injured were taken to a hospital after complaining of back pain, but only one--Chris Pitts, 21, of Huntington Beach--remained at the hospital for further tests Tuesday. The others were treated and released by the fair’s first aid staff.

“We came around the turn, and I thought it was going to be a quick stop,” Pitts said in a telephone interview. “I was thinking, we’re going to stop, we’re going to stop--well, maybe not. We hit (the other car) pretty darn hard.”

Buddy Merten, president of B & B Amusements, the Yuma, Ariz.-based owner of the Cyclone, said the ride operator became distracted and kept his hand on a lever instead of removing it so the brakes could be activated. The worker, whom Merten would not identify, was not disciplined.

Rich Stephens, a spokesman for the state occupational safety and health office, said an initial review pointed toward operator error. The ride reopened Tuesday afternoon.