Technology
Watch: Teenagers left dangling high above crowd after slingshot ride malfunctions
Two teenage boys were left dangling in the air and had to be rescued after a bungee ride malfunctioned at London’s annual Winter Wonderland holiday event in Hyde Park.
Footage shows one of the slingshot cords appearing to break sending the carriage in which the teenagers were seated flying into one of the ride’s supporting posts.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Shocking moment slingshot ride snaps at Hyde Park.
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The ride was meant to use both cords to slingshot the cage into the air and bounce back.
Spectators were heard gasping and exclaiming in shock as the kids flew into the air.
London’s Metropolitan Police was called to the scene Wednesday just after 8.20pm on reports of two people trapped in a bungee ride. The London Fire Brigade also responded to the incident.
Metropolitan Police said by the time officers arrived, the boys in the fairground ride cage had been lowered down and they had left the scene. No injuries were reported, police said.
Officials said based on a preliminary inspection there was a “technical fault with a sealed gear box that controls the release of the elastic cord and steel wire rope” and further inspections are underway.
The Health and Safety Executive has been alerted about the incident, police said.
A spokesperson for Hyde Park Winter Wonderland said that “a technical issue involving the reverse bungee occurred on Wednesday evening.”
“Both riders were safely escorted off the ride, checked by our on-site medics and were not injured,” the spokesperson said.
The ride is closed pending further investigation, but all other attractions at Winter Wonderland are operating as normal, the spokesperson said, stressing, “Safety is our highest priority.”
“All of our rides undergo rigorous and regular safety checks by experienced members of staff trained in Health and safety. We also provide regular training for all staff to ensure our visitors can enjoy a fun and safe experience,” Hyde Park Winter Wonderland said in a statement.
The Amusement Device Inspection Procedures Scheme, responsible for the inspection and certification of fairground rides and amusement devices, said in a statement that the elastic cord and steel wire rope supporting the bungee ride “has not snapped or failed in any way.”
“We inspected the ride at 7am this morning and it was found that a technical issue had occurred within a sealed gear box that controls the release of the elastic cord and steel wire rope,” the statement said.
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