The return of the Hook Arena Fair after a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic was supposed to be a joyous occasion, but it quickly turned into a nightmare when a young girl was left with serious injuries after an accident on one of the rides on Monday 3rd April.

 

According to eyewitnesses, the incident happened on the Frogitt ride, which spins around and bounces up and down. The metal bar on the ride opened up, causing the young girl to clutch onto it. It is unclear at this time whether the metal bar was properly checked before the ride began or if there was a mechanical failure during its operation.

 

A local man who witnessed the incident described how he saw the girl's leg hanging off the ride and immediately ran to the kiosk to shout for the ride to be stopped. No first aid from people running the stalls was given, and the girl only received first aid from the people who paid to enter the fair.

 

“I see some girl’s leg hanging off the ride and it didn't look right. So I went over to the kiosk thing and shouted ‘Stop the ride! Stop the f****ing ride! Stop it!’ And no reply. She’d gone around three times. When it stopped, she was in pain and mangled on the floor, so I phoned the ambulance straight away." the man explained.

 

Another witness stated that the security guard assured people that the girl had “‘only fallen out’ and continued taking money for entrances, despite the undealt incident.”

 

“There had been a young boy with the rider, and nobody had acknowledged him. He had a bad leg, but nobody gave him first aid, not even the ambulance," said a third witness.

 

The girl was airlifted, as there was no entrance for ambulance vans, to St George's Hospital for treatment, and although the severity of her injuries has not been disclosed, eyewitnesses reported that she was in pain and ‘mangled’ on the floor when the ride finally stopped.

 

The incident has raised serious concerns about the safety of fairground rides and the need for proper safety measures to be put in place to protect fairgoers. The fair's organizers have not yet issued a statement regarding the incident, but it is hoped that they will take steps to ensure that similar incidents do not occur in the future.

 

Ezekiel Bertrand, Glyn School