An amusement ride malfunctioned at St. John the Beloved Church’s annual carnival Tuesday night, leaving 20 people trapped on the Zipper ride for hours, according to the Mill Creek Fire Company.
First responders were notified of the incident at the church just before 9:30 p.m. Tuesday when someone who was at the carnival radioed in about the accident in Milltown. Staff from the fire company, as well as New Castle County Police, were already present at the festival.
“One of the area rides broke, there’s two cars stuck together about 30 feet off the ground,” the man radioed.
The call initiated a high-angle rescue for the ride, which reaches 60 feet in height.
One of the cages appeared to break off its hinge, falling down past three other ride cages into the center of the ride and leaving those in the cages trapped.
The fire company did not detail the mechanism of what occurred on the ride, other than to call it a malfunction.
The ride was immediately shut down and first responders rushed to the scene with various ways to try and reach the riders, including a large, extendable fire truck ladder, which some children were walked down to safety.
The fire company said all riders were removed from the ride safely using “aerial platforms from the Christiana and Brandywine Hundred Fire Companies and Mill Creek Fire Company’s ladder truck.” One person was taken to Christiana Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Mill Creek Fire Company.
By about 10 p.m., more than a dozen fire and EMS units from several different agencies were on the scene, according to first responder radio communications. At least four ambulances were also called to the scene for precautionary measures.
They remained there until after midnight, according to the fire company. The Delaware State Fire Marshal’s Office is now investigating what caused the malfunction.
The carnival, held at the church at 905 Milltown Road, opened Monday and was slated to run through Saturday, June 10. Tuesday was designated as “Family Night.”
It’s not immediately clear if it will reopen Wednesday.
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