May 17, 2008 10:30 am US/Eastern
Calif. Carnival Ride Collapses, Injuring 18
ANGELS CAMP, Calif. (AP) ―
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Officials say riders were injured when a type of swing ride at the Angels Camp collapsed on May 16, 2008.
Three people attending a fair in California's Calaveras County were seriously injured Friday evening during the collapse of a carnival ride.
Another 15 riders also were hurt, but their injuries were considered less serious, said Dennis Townsend, a chief in the Calaveras County unit of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention.
Most of those injured were kids, he said.
The three most seriously injured riders were airlifted to three different hospitals: UC Davis, Doctors Hospital in Modesto and Memorial North Hospital in Modesto.
Townsend said they were injured when a type of swing ride collapsed shortly after 6 p.m. Friday. The ride has arms that fling out as they spin around an axis.
He said he did not know what might have caused the collapse or specifically how the riders were hurt. There were reportedly 25 people on the ride when it collapsed.
State accident investigators were en route to the fairgrounds.
Laurie Giannini, the fairground's marketing director, said the fair remained open Friday night but the carnival area was shut down following the accident.
The Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee is held each year in late May and was inspired by the Mark Twain story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County."
Twain's tale focuses on a character and his jumping frog, named Dan'l Webster. The frog-jumping contest is rigged in one gambler's favor when he secretly fills his opponent's frog with buckshot.
The Calaveras County fairgrounds is located just outside the Gold Rush-era town of Angels Camp in the Sierra Nevada foothills, about 80 miles southeast of Sacramento. It bills itself as an "old-fashion county fair" with exhibits and a variety of entertainment.
Last year's jumping frog contest drew 4,000 entries. This year's final is scheduled for Sunday.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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