Five people were injured after a newly-installed ride at a Raleigh, North Carolina, fairgrounds suddenly restarted as riders were getting out of their seats on Thursday night, Reuters reported.
Fair spokesman Brian Long said the ride malfunctioned at 9:17 p.m. as riders were getting off and that an ambulance was at the scene immediately, according to the Associated Press. He said two of the five "appeared to be serious; the other three not as serious."
The injured, which included the ride's operator, were all taken to a nearby Raleigh hospital. Sheriff Donnie Harrison of Wake County said the reason for the malfunction was still being investigated, Reuters reported.
Harrison told the Charlotte Observer that his department will investigate it as a crime until it's confirmed otherwise. He said there were 35 to 40 witnesses to the accident and a television station WRAL in Raleigh quoted witnesses saying several people were thrown off the ride and that some were unconscious.
The clinical administrator for WakeMed Hospital, Linda Fowler, said the five people who were injured were admitted to the hospital, but declined to give out any more information, according to the AP
State Department of Labor workers will be investigating whether the ride was being properly inspected, officials told Reuters. Harrison confirmed the Sheriff's department will also be conducting its own investigation and will look for witnesses.
The owner of Powers Great American Midway, the carnival company in charge of the rides, Les Powers told the AP on Friday that he does not know what could have caused the accident.
"Nobody wants this to happen, and we're trying to find out why this did happen," he said. "Until I find out any information, I can't even give you a clue."
According to Powers, the contract with the fair states he provides 93 rides to the fair, but his company has only provided 54, and outsourced for the remaining rides. The vortex is owned by a Georgia-based carnival owner, and not Powers, the AP reported.
"We feel absolutely horrible for the families," Powers told AP. "I'm not used to this. This doesn't happen. I don't know how to react. I tried to sleep last night, but I couldn't. I just feel so horrible for them, about the whole thing. I wish I could turn the clock back. "
