Tourists injured in ride malfunction at International Silk Festival

Tourists were injured when a giant squid ride at the International Silk Festival malfunctioned, causing a piece to break off and hit the ground.

The accident, which occurred during the last ride of the day yesterday, December 1, resulted in three people sustaining injuries. Following the incident, authorities swiftly stepped in, providing immediate medical assistance to the injured and transporting them to the hospital.

This morning, December 2, Prachuap Rakphat, the District Chief Officer of Khon Kaen, along with Anu Jeungsakul, the city’s Town Planning Officer and other concerned authorities, inspected the site of the incident.

Upon examination, they discovered that the part of the ride that connected to the squid’s tentacle had broken off, causing the ride to collapse and injure the tourists. All three injured tourists were not critically harmed.

Prachuap revealed that the incident occurred at 11.45pm last night during the ride’s last round of operation. As the ride was in motion, the squid tentacle section of the ride broke and hit three female tourists who were in its vicinity.

Prachuap further disclosed that all three injured individuals have now been discharged from the hospital. He also mentioned that before this year’s Silk Festival, the Khon Kaen Governor ordered a safety inspection of all rides, including the squid ride, which was found to be safe and insured.

Temporary closure

However, following the incident, the squid ride has been temporarily shut down until a thorough investigation is conducted by the Office of the Town Planning and Urban Affairs of Khon Kaen Province, and its safety is assured, reported KhaoSod.

The ride’s supervisor, 36 year old Jaturong (surname withheld) explained that he had set up the squid ride on November 30, after operating it at the Elephant Fair in Surin Province. He stated that at the time of the incident, there were not many tourists on the ride. Jaturong added that when the ride was about to stop, the ride operator heard an unusual noise, akin to metal vibrating, before the tentacle of the squid, which had three tourists on it, hit the ground.

Immediate medical assistance was sought, with one of the injured needing to be hospitalised due to a head injury. Jaturong plans to visit them in the hospital.

Jaturong also mentioned that he had insured the ride to cater to any tourists using the service. Following the incident, he found that the entire metal arm of the ride would need to be replaced to ensure the safety of future tourists.