14 DAY TRIAL // Five people were injured when a ride at the North Carolina state fair malfunctioned, sending visitors flying.
They fell 20 feet (6 meters) from the Vortex ride and ended up on the pavement during the Thursday incident. The news report above features a video shot as first responders arrived at the scene.
Three people remained unconscious after being thrown to the ground. Some of them were family members, and the ride operator was among those injured. WRAL reported that one person was in critical condition yesterday.
The Vortex spins riders and, in this case, it stopped for a while then rebooted. When it started working again, it threw people off. It has been closed off on Friday and will not be reopened until the state fair ends, this Sunday.
"The ride started, and it wasn't supposed to. It went up in the air, and people have fallen down on the platform," a 911 caller recalls.