Credit: Jeff Egnaczyk (post406), FlickrA recent viral video shows at least nine children plummeting backwards on a steel roller coaster track after an accident that sent the wheels flying off the ride vehicle. The incident appears to have taken place at a local carnival or fair, reigniting conversations about safety and maintenance on traveling theme park attractions.
Earlier this month, TikTok user @fallenarrows shared this video of kids riding a small dragon roller coaster when suddenly, the wheels snapped off. The kids watched in horror as the wheels continued down the round track without them.
A few moments later, the roller coaster made loud creaking sounds, and the dragon ride vehicle plunged backwards down the track. In the background, a spectator asked, “You ain’t gonna f**king stop it?”
The video quickly amassed over 1.2 million views, over 77,000 likes, and hundreds of comments. Many cited incidents like this one as their reasons for not trusting the traveling theme park equipment often seen at circuses, fairs, and carnivals.
“My dad was a roller coaster inspector and always said don’t trust anything that can be built or taken down in a day,” said @abbyzepp.
“Honestly after working as a mechanic I can’t ever enjoy carnival rides again,” @sloppytoppy024 agreed. “Just notice how poorly most of it is maintained lol. Oof that’s a rough weld, or oh that bearing is about to go.”
“These rides used to be safe but they have been using them for 40 plus years,” @thelostlore_ echoed.
Still, others say rare accidents like this shouldn’t scare people into thinking all traveling roller coasters and amusement park rides are unsafe.
“I used to be a carnie on the kiddy rides and our boss went around every night to check the rides,” @canddg84 wrote. “Our job in the morning was to check over everything and if we found a coin there was something not correct, if you didn’t find a coin and you went to do your test run and you find out the key was gone you missed an issue (could range from R clips, bolts to seat belts etc). You had to fix the issue, return the coin and have the owner come check the ride, prior to 2 hours before open time. Sadly not all run this way.”
Has something ever gone wrong during a ride at your local fair or carnival? Share your experience with Inside the Magic in the comments!