Ohio State Fair bystander Brian Bury handed over the data card from his camera to investigators, telling state troopers that he took photos shortly before the Fire Ball ride ripped apart, flinging two teenage riders into the air and raining debris down on the Midway.
An image captured by Bury shows “the back of the orange gondola appears to have what can be construed as a crack running across the area where the gondola detaches,” according to a 62-page investigative report released Thursday by the Ohio Highway Patrol.
Shown the photo, the ride operators employed by Amusements of America, which owns the Fire Ball, said they didn’t notice any cracks.
After reviewing the report, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien declined to pursue criminal charges in the July 26 accident that killed 18-year-old Tyler Jarrell of Columbus and injured several others.
The report details the chaotic, horrific scene on the Midway.
Around 7:24 p.m., Trooper Corey Cottrill, chatting with two other troopers by the ferris wheel, said he just saw someone fall off a ride. All three troopers took off running toward the Fire Ball.
Emergency responders found Jarrell unconscious and without a pulse on the pavement in a truck parking area. They had to move two fifth-wheel dollies to get to him and start CPR. Jarrell and his girlfriend, Keziah Lewis, were ejected from the Fire Ball when the seating gondola ripped away from the ride on opening night of the fair.
Firefighters used the Jaws of Life to free Tamica Dunlap and Russell Franks who were still strapped into the detached gondola.
Read more-Original article posted by Dayton Daily News: http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/new-details-victims-changed-seats-just-before-ohio-state-fair-ride-tragedy/7bWsTKMQOU0kqAOVqzCIVI/
