The operator can be seen switching off the power and jumping out of his position to attempt to stabilize the ride by holding onto the metal fencing surrounding the machine. He was quickly joined by about a dozen bystanders who succeeded in stopping the ride from rocking.
“I think if they hadn’t been holding it, it would have fallen back,” witness Kobe Ramirez told the Traverse City Record-Eagle. “They unplugged it so it was still moving and they had to wait for it to slow down.”
Police and officials with the company that operates the carnival said the cause of the malfunction is still under investigation.
“We’re not sure exactly what happened,” Joey Even of Traverse City-based Arnold’s Amusements said. “The ride came off the blocking.”
No injuries were reported.
