Tim Ryan, tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
Leader File Photo A group of kids ride the Freak Out at the 2012 Shawano County Fair. The ride has been banned from the Wisconsin State Fair because of a fatal accident with a similar ride at the Ohio State Fair earlier this week.
Wisconsin State Fair officials have banned the Freak Out ride from its amusement area in the wake of an accident on a similar ride that killed one person and injured seven others at the Ohio State Fair.
However, local officials do not plan to eliminate the ride from the Shawano County Fair.
An 18-year-old man was killed Wednesday when the Fire Ball ride he was on broke apart in mid-air, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
The Fire Ball was not one of the rides planned for Wisconsin, but the fair issued a statement Friday pulling the plug on “a similar ride,” the Freak Out, that was planned for the SpinCity Amusement Ride and Game Area.
“Out of respect for the families affected by the tragedy, as well as the pending investigation into why the accident occurred, Wisconsin State Fair Park Chairman of the Board John Yingling, along with Kathleen O’Leary, Wisconsin State Fair Park CEO, have made the decision to not have the Freak Out at the 2017 Wisconsin State Fair,” the statement said.
The Freak Out has become one of the prime amusement ride attractions at the Shawano County Fair in recent years, and Dale Hodkiewicz, president of the Shawano Area Agricultural Society that organizes the annual fair, said there is currently no plan to eliminate the ride.
“That’s a decision that will have to be made,” he said. “That’s a month away.”
However, at this point, Hodkiewicz said, he saw no reason to eliminate the ride and no plan to take the matter to the fair board for discussion.
“We’re not going to take that ride off unless we’re forced to,” he said.
Hodkiewicz said he also wanted to wait until the Fire Ball investigation is completed.
After that, he said, “state inspectors will have to make a decision” regarding the safety of the Freak Out.
Hodkiewicz said that if state inspectors and the carnival owner give their approval, the ride will go on as planned.
“It’s a month away, and a lot can change,” Hodkiewicz said. “I’m not going to get too excited about something that’s not in our control.”
The manufacturer of the Fire Ball, KMG International, put out a statement Thursday saying that the Fire Ball and similar rides should cease operation until further notice.
However, that statement did not include the Freak Out.
In an interview Friday, Kristi Chuckel, communications director for the state fair, said the Freak Out was considered a similar ride by the state fair because it is “a pendulum-swinging ride that rotates.”