FROM CBS NEWS: Two girls were hospitalized after they were thrown from a Ferris wheel on Saturday afternoon at a festival in Louisiana, authorities said. One suffered broken bones and the other may have bleeding in her brain, CBS News Chicago reported.
Photos and video taken at the scene appeared to show the Ferris wheel — at the annual Harvest Festival in New Roads, some 40 miles northwest of Baton Rouge — paused mid-ride with one of the baskets that seat riders tipped upside down.
Witnesses told CBS affiliate WAFB that the girls were ejected from the basket while the Ferris wheel was rotating. Two girls fell at least 20 feet onto a steel platform below, while a third clung to the basket, which was suspended about 15 feet in the air.
The incident happened at around 12 p.m., according to Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff Rene’ Thibodeaux, whose office responded to the incident. He said the family is “in our prayers.”
He said accidents like this are rare and the injuries are “unfortunate'”
Witnesses described the scene.
“As it was going around, it was just like, stuck at an angle, and they flipped out of it,” witness Ronald Brasseaux, told WAFB. He said he’d felt unsafe on the same ride the previous day.
“They need to take this thing down,” he told the outlet.
Madison Fields said she heard a loud boom, which she believes was a body falling. She head that one child landed on her face.
“They said she was real damaged,” Fields said.
She had planned to board the ride herself, and was shaken by the incident.
“What if the could have been me?” she said, pointing out that the ride had no seat belts, making it unsafe, especially for young riders.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the incident, as they are required to perform routine safety checks on rides and attractions in the area, according to WAFB.
The Harvest Festival in New Roads “is dedicated to supporting the local agriculture-based community,” according to its website.
Pregnant woman injured after ATV driven by New Roads officer hits couple at Harvest Festival: https://t.co/tdQq2Wv7lQ pic.twitter.com/AMavaYE1D2
— WAFB (@WAFB) November 3, 2025
Two girls, both under 13 years old, were rushed to the hospital after being thrown from a Ferris Wheel ride at the Harvest Festival in New Roads, Louisiana: https://t.co/ChcrDGSbv2 pic.twitter.com/23kKakXBIe
— WWL-TV (@WWLTV) November 3, 2025
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