Ride safety top priority
Following a high profile incident Wednesday where the “Fireball” ride at the Ohio State Fair broke apart, killing one individual, Wendy Hauser, manager of West Coast Amusements, is reassuring the Medicine Hat public there is no risk in coming out to enjoy the local midway rides during Stampede week.
“We understand everybody’s concern. That’s just tragic when something like that happens. But we assure you that our rides are safe, and they are checked daily by the ride supervisors, they are checked provincially in every province, and our insurance agents sent a representative to check on us again just last week. So there are lots of crosschecks.”
Hauser said many of her operators have decades of experience working with their rides, and have a good idea what to watch out for if there is some kind of maintenance issue. Also, her maintenance teams go over every ride and sign off on a safety inspection sheet every two days while the rides are operating.
“Nobody wants an incident,” says Hauser. “We’re in the business of people having fun, not in the business of having people come to the fair to get hurt.”
But Hauser also admits her company, being a national touring company, is more strictly regulated than the average local fair.
“What’s good about West Coast Amusements is because we do play the (national) fairs everything is regularly inspected. What you have to watch out for is the smaller fairs at the malls and things like that. The public has a right to go to the admin office of that little show and ask: ‘Have you been inspected?’ They should have a certificate to show they are.
Hauser says West Coast Amusements does have a ride called the “Fireball” or “Ring of Fire,” but it is not the same machine as the one which broke in Ohio.