Loose keys cause minor injury at Westmoreland Fair

A teen girl had a minor injury at the Westmoreland Fair this week after a set of keys fell during an amusement ride and landed in the mechanism operating the ride, according to a fair representative.

The girl was on the Superman ride Monday when another rider’s keys fell down into a chain, despite warning signs that urge riders to secure loose objects.

“The ride didn’t stop, it just jerked,” said the representative who declined to identify herself.

The force caused the teen girl to hit her head on a cage. The ride was stopped and she was treated at the first aid station. An ambulance was called, but her parents declined it.

The ride, run by Tropical Amusements, was shut down for the evening but has since been reopened. The representative said the ride was inspected by the state before the fair opened and it received another inspection after the incident.

“There was no ride malfunction or anything, it was just a loose article fall,” the representative said.