Additional Coverage:
Two Girls Hospitalized After Ferris Wheel Incident at Louisiana Festival
NEW ROADS, LA – Two young girls are currently hospitalized after being ejected from a Ferris wheel at the annual Harvest Festival in New Roads, Louisiana, on Saturday afternoon. One girl sustained multiple broken bones, while the other is being monitored for potential brain bleeding, according to reports.
The incident occurred around 12 p.m. at the festival, located approximately 40 miles northwest of Baton Rouge. Eyewitness accounts and visual evidence from the scene depict the Ferris wheel halted with one of its passenger baskets inverted.
Witnesses told CBS affiliate WAFB that the girls were thrown from the basket as the ride was in motion. Two of the girls reportedly fell at least 20 feet onto a steel platform below. A third girl managed to cling to the basket, which was suspended about 15 feet in the air.
Ronald Brasseaux, who witnessed the event, described seeing the basket “stuck at an angle” before the girls “flipped out of it.” Brasseaux also shared that he had felt unsafe while riding the same Ferris wheel the day prior and urged for its removal.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office, responsible for conducting safety inspections on festival rides and attractions, has launched an investigation into the cause of the malfunction. Following the incident, only the Ferris wheel and one other nearby ride at the Harvest Festival were closed to the public, according to the Fire Marshal’s Office.
Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff Rene’ Thibodeaux confirmed his office’s response to the incident. The Harvest Festival is an annual event in New Roads that aims to support the local agricultural community.
CBS News has reached out to both the Sheriff’s Office and the Fire Marshal’s Office for further details regarding the ongoing investigation.