In a continuing rise in amusement park accidents within the past few weeks, six children were shocked by electricity on a Connecticut amusement park ride, according to authorities.
Police officers responded to a call that a small child might have been struck by electricity on a ride called the Scrambler at Ocean Beach Park in New London before 2:00 p.m. When they arrived on the scene, police reported finding six victims who had suffered an electric jolt.
New London Deputy Police Chief Peter Reichard told ABC News affiliate WTNH-TV, “Emergency services transported several children to the local hospital, received some type of electrical shock. The most serious injured had some small burns on the palms of his hands from when he touched the metal railing when he was getting off the ride.”
Reichard said, in a CBS8 report, that the ride operator was shutting off the ride and claimed he felt an electric shock while pressing a button. When the kids got off the Scrambler, they said they had felt tingling sensations while they were on the ride.
The total extent of injuries is unclear.
The park ride has been closed and will remain so as investigators look into the accident. Authorities have yet to find the cause of the power surge. Reichard said that they’re trying to isolate where the electric shock could have come from, as different rides in the park use electricity.
The management of Ocean Beach Park released a statement saying that safety is always their “number one priority,” and that they are cooperating with the Connecticut State Police, local police, and the Fire Marshal’s Office.
Last week, a 3-year-old boy was airlifted to a hospital after falling off a roller coaster in Pennsylvania. In Tennessee, three young girls were wounded after their Ferris wheel cabin tipped over, dropping them some 40 feet to the ground. In Kansas, Caleb Schwab, 10 years old, died in a waterslide accident.
