Ohio Carnival Ride Accidents Look At Precautions To Prevent Children From Risk For Serious Bodily Injuries

  • Post category:August 2016

National and Ohio Carnival Ride Accidents Involving Ferris Wheels, Carousels, and Roller Coasters Have Sent Over 92,000 Children To Emergency Rooms

carnival-ride-accidents-wright-and-schulte-llc

Ohio Carnival Ride Accidents: With summer now in full swing, children wait in anticipation to board popular rides at carnivals and amusements parks. Sadly, fun can turn into fright if Ohio carnival ride accidents occur as they already have nationwide. In one instance, a teenager hit a metal barricade and died after being ejected from a carnival ride which had riders in seats that spin. In another accident, an 11-year-old girl suffered a fractured skull when she fell off a spinning carnival ride. A freak carnival ride accident made nationwide news when an 11-year-old girl was critically injured when her hair became tangled in a carnival ride. Her mother is now speaking out and working to pass LuLu’s Law which would make amusement park
[wgntv.com/2016/07/14/girl-scalped-by-carnival-ride-recovering-hopes-to-return-to-school-this-fall/, WGN, July 14, 2016]

A study by the Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio found that 92,885 children 17 years old and under were treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments from 1990 to 2010 for injuries involving fixed-site amusement rides, such as Ferris wheels, carousels, and roller coasters. That’s an annual average of 4,423 injuries, the report said. The head and neck received the most injuries (28 percent), and falling in, on, off, or against the ride were the most frequent ways injuries occurred (31.7 percent).
[intl-cpj.sagepub.com/content/52/5/433.abstract
May 2013]

Just as Ohio carnival ride accidents can occur on fixed-site rides, injuries can also occur on inflatable amusements, such as moon bounces, (also known as a “bounce house”), obstacle courses or slides. According to a report from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, 12 deaths involving inflatable amusements occurred between 2003 to 2013. An estimated 113,272 injuries were treated in emergency departments. Of the total number of injuries, 104,875 or 93 percent, were linked to moon bounces. Children ages 4 to 15 accounted for 61 percent of the estimated injuries from 2011 to 2013 and the majority of those injuries involved the leg and arm.
[cpsc.gov/Global/Research-and-Statistics/Injury-Statistics/Amusement-Rides/InflatableAmusementsDeathsandInjuries2015.pdf

With carnival ride accidents increasing, courts have seen negligence and product liability lawsuits being filed against owners and operators of amusement parks and carnivals rides. Locally, amusement park operators and carnival owners attempt to prevent Ohio carnival ride accidents by inspecting their rides. Additionally, the CPSC recommends that adults:

  • Watch the ride with your child before boarding
  • Follow the minimum height, age, weight, and health restriction for children
  • Follow any special instructions about seating order or loading
  • Always use the safety equipment provided, such as seat belts and safety bars
  • Make sure children keep hands, arms, feet and heads inside the ride
  • Don’t put children on rides they’re afraid of

The CPSC advises parents to take a “pro-active role” in helping their child stay safe at amusement parks and carnivals. The amusement park industry’s standards are “spotty at best,” the CPSC says. So, it’s important for parents to supervise their children by remembering that rides are “powerful machines and the kids are just kids.”
[saferparks.org/safety-tips/top-10-tips-parents]
[saferparks.org/safety-tips/watch-children-carefully]

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