RECREATIONAL PARK ACCIDENT: Girl injured after being tossed out of carnival ride

July 27, 2010

Paso Robles – A 9-year-old girl was thrown out of a carnival ride at the California Mid-State Fair Tuesday night, authorities have reported.

Paso Robles Fire Department said the accident at the fair was reported at around 2:30 p.m..

According to the Jerry Smithson, Risk Manager of Davis Enterprises, which owns “Super Himalaya,” the young girl was riding a car that got in between two others. She may have gone under or over the lap bar.

The car was going backward when it tossed the girl out. According to a witness, the girl just flew off and crashed against the steel face surrounding the ride. Her mother asked the operator to stop the ride.

She was sent to Twin Cities Hospital after suffering minor cuts and abrasions. Super Himalaya was shut down after the accident. "We will not open the ride until we feel the ride is safe and until we find out why this incident happened," Smithson added.

The operator claimed that neither the lap bar nor the ride itself malfunctioned and that the girl met the age and height requirements.

Cal-OSHA and Davis Enterprises will both investigate the accident. If the operator is at fault, the owner of the ride could be fined. If it was due to mechanical error, the ride must be fixed and re-certified before it can operate again.

Super Himalaya features cars on a circle track that spin forward and backward at an angle.