A ‘major malfunction’ on a ferris wheel at the Royal Hobart Show late this afternoon has reportedly left two staff members injured and children shaken.
A witness told Pulse that she noticed something was wrong when the wheel began spinning ‘faster than usual’ after a ‘cable came loose’.
She said workers attempted to shut down the “rather fast” ride, but it continued to rotate rapidly.
Several staff members rushed to help, grabbing hold of the wheel in an effort to slow its momentum.
“They managed to get several people to grab on to hold it while they attached large ratchet straps to hold it in place while people were able to be let off,” the witness said.
Some passengers were able to disembark before the staff lost hold of the straps they were using to keep the wheel in place and it again started to spin “violently”.
“There were some young children in one of the carriages that were thrown out of their seats,” the witness said.
Eventually, staff regained control and slowly brought the wheel to a halt, allowing the remaining passengers, including a father and his two young children, to safely exit.
Royal Agricultural Society Tasmania chief executive Scott Gadd confirmed the incident and said Worksafe Tasmania is on-site to investigate.
“I don’t have the details, but what I do know is it stopped, all the passengers had to be evacuated and two staff members ended up with some minor injuries,” he told Pulse.
In a statement on Saturday, a Worksafe Tasmania spokesperson said they were aware of the incident and were investigating.
Worksafe on Friday told Pulse inspectors had been at the show on both Wednesday and Thursday conducting “compliance inspections” of rides and food vans.
“Public safety is the primary concern when conducting the inspections, which are aimed at verifying that adequate systems are place to ensure the safety and proper maintenance of the attractions,” they said.
“WorkSafe Tasmania is pleased to report that no notices were issued as a result of the inspections.”
