The Chilling Facts on Thrill Ride Injuries : ‘Let The Rider Beware’ Should Be Motto for Visitors at Fairs and Amusement Parks

For more than a century, part of the fun of summer has been the Orange County Fair, which closes today. But this year’s cavalcade of music, livestock and rides contained a cautionary note as well.

Roller coaster riders climb aboard with the expectation of increasing nervousness as the cars climb and a stomach-in-the-throat feeling as they plunge. Riders also put their faith in a kind of psychological safety net, foreseeing no real harm from the ups and downs.

But this year a roller coaster train at the fair crashed into a second, which struck a third, when an operator failed to apply the brakes. Eight people were injured, including one man who spent a day and a half in the hospital. State officials chalked it up to human error.

The roller coaster operator, B & B Amusements of Yuma, Ariz., has run a number of carnival rides at the fair for nine years.

A study by the fair’s safety consultant last year showed there were 28 ride-related injuries on B & B attractions during the 17-day event. Most were minor events like bumped heads and stubbed toes. A state official said the Orange County Fair rides appeared as safe as any other fair’s in the state.

Three nights after the fair accident, a 34-year-old woman fell from a high-speed, spinning ride at Knott’s Berry Farm and was hospitalized after suffering head injuries. Again, inspectors found no mechanical problems with the ride. Park officials said the woman was mentally disabled and had climbed out of the ride while it was spinning.

With an average of more than one accident a day at last year’s fair, with safety records at the fair and at Knott’s that inspectors consider good, there is indeed at least some element of danger that has to be expected in the thrill rides.

We don’t mean to rain on someone’s summer fun, but when it comes to thrill rides, the motto must be, “Let the rider beware.”