Editor’s note: Do you think rides at fairs and amusement parks are safe? If you have any stories you’d like to share on the topic, please contact I-Team reporter Josh Sweigart at josh.sweigart@coxinc.com.
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Before a single ride at the Great Darke County Fair could spin, flip, coast or glide on opening day Friday, Mike Vartorella’s team had to declare it safe.
Vartorella is chief ride inspector for the Ohio Department of Agriculture, which inspects roughly 3,700 rides and more than 600 games every year to make sure they meet safety standards.
“These have all been initially inspected for the state. We’re going to do a supplemental inspection, make sure they’re up to manufacturer’s specifications and open them up to the public,” he said as one of his three on-site inspectors tugged on shoulder restraints on a scrambler-type ride.
Ride safety was foremost on the mind of parents interviewed at the fair, especially in light of recent tragedies such as a 10-year-old boy being killed on a slide at a Kansas water park, a 3-year-old hospitalized after an accident on a wooden rollercoaster in Pennsylvania, and several girls being injured in Tennessee after a Ferris wheel gondola flipped and dumped them 30 to 45 feet.
“It is a concern, obviously, especially for my youngest son, but I know they are inspected and I guess you trust the workers will do their job,” said Beth Guggenbiller, who was at the fair with her 7-year-old son and two older children.
The roughly two dozen rides at the Darke County Fair are provided by the Cincinnati company Kissel Brothers. Company proprietor Carmi Kissel said she has eight men who inspect every ride every day and won’t open them unless they meet manufacturer specifications.
The Great Darke County Fair — one of the region’s largest — runs Friday through Aug. 27.
The Montgomery County Fair runs Aug. 31 through Sept. 5.
