Carnivalgoers Rush To Stop Ride From Tipping Over At Michigan Fair
A ride at a Michigan carnival became a lot scarier after its structure began to sway, prompting bystanders to rush toward the contraption and keep it stable.
The Magic Carpet Ride at the National Cherry Festival in Traverse City began having visible problems on Thursday at around 11 p.m., according to UpNorthLive News.
Video footage shows the ride, full of people, tilting and jostling with its base coming up off the ground. One person approaches the ride and gets up onto the base, attempting to counterbalance it with their weight. The person is soon joined by a crowd of others who get on the base and seem to successfully prevent the ride from continuing to tip.
This angle is much, much worse! Wow pic.twitter.com/2cEJK3h0ee
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) July 10, 2021
Here’s another video: pic.twitter.com/5auCaiRlEp
— Chad (@ChadBlue83) July 10, 2021
The crowd reportedly cheered when people were able to get off the ride safely.
About 25 people joined in trying to hold the ride down, witness Joy Ogemaw told ABC 7. She noted that prior to that, the ride looked like it had been about to “fall back into the river.”
Joe Even of Arnold Amusements, the company that was operating the ride, told the news outlet that “obviously there was a malfunction” but that the company is in the process of investigating what caused it. He noted that the company that makes it is in Ohio.
Even also praised bystanders for stepping up tp help.
“It just goes to show you what type of people live here in Traverse City ― that they without even a second thought will go right over and do whatever they need to, you know for one of their own,” he said.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
