Six UK theme park rides closed after teen's death in US

Six UK rides have been closed following the death of a teenager on a Fire Ball ride, above, at the Ohio State Fair Credit: AP Photo/Jay LaPrete

Six UK theme park rides have been temporarily shut following the death of a teenager on a similar ride in the US.

The action has been taken in the wake of the death of 18-year-old Tyler Jarrell who was killed when a swinging and spinning ride called the Fire Ball, which was aKMG Afterburner model, broke apart at the Ohio State Fair on July 26.

According to the Health and Safety Executive, five UK rides were re-inspected and temporarily taken out of use after the incident in the US and a sixth ride was independently taken out of action by its owner.

The affected rides are located at:

  • Pleasure Wood Hills – Suffolk

  • Ryan Crow Amusements – North East

  • Coney Beach Fair – Porthcawl, South Wales

  • Joseph Manning – based in Hertfordshire

  • Brean Theme Park – Somerset

  • Lightwater Valley - North Yorkshire

A spokeswoman from the HSE said it was aware of six machines of a similar version to the one in Ohio that were operating in the UK and all of them had been thoroughly inspected within the last 12 months but a "re-inspection" had been initiated.

She said: "There is no verified information regarding the immediate cause of the US accident. Following the incident, HSE initiated a re-inspection of these machines.

"As a result, on Friday 28 July an enforcement notice was served on five of the machines, which are now to be taken out of use until the notices have been complied with.

"The sixth, at Lightwater Valley in North Yorkshire, was immediately taken out of use following the incident in Ohio. This was a decision taken independently by the operator."

It is also understood that a letter has been sent to operators of all similar machines operating in the UK and that some owners may have closed rides "as a precautionary measure".