Girl allegedly thrown headfirst from attraction at Indiana County Fair – investigation launched

According to officials and local news outlets, rides at a fair in the US state of Indiana have been removed after a girl was thrown from one of the attractions.

A little girl was thrown from the “Rock and Roll” ride, which goes up and down, and suffered injuries, according to reports from WHET, WFIE and that Bradenton Herald.

After the incident, a fairgoer named Anna Deorto shared in a Facebook post that the “girl right next to me flew out of her seat during the ride.”

“She fell through head first. Her body just broke through, head included,” Deorto said. WFIEand added that the ride did not end immediately after the girl was thrown out.

“I’m holding on like I’m trying to get people’s attention and I’m waving my arms,” ​​Deorto recalls. “‘Hey, she fell out. Stop the ride. You have to stop this ride. The seatbelt isn’t on, guys. She fell out. She needs help.'”

She also claimed to the outlet that the driver never checked the passengers’ seat belts.

PEOPLE reached out to the Dubois County Sheriff’s Office but did not immediately receive a response.

David Hosick of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) told PEOPLE in a statement that the head of the inspection unit reached out to the ride owner, who “stated the ride operator failed to properly secure a group of girls in one of the ride’s cars.” He said the girl “suffered minor injuries” after she “fell out.”

“She was given a bandage and an ice pack and left the scene of the accident with her family and friends. No ambulance was requested at the scene of the accident nor was any additional treatment required,” he said, adding that the ride was suspended after the incident.

Hosick noted that the Rock and Roll ride was last inspected on June 11, and that two of the passenger cars were deemed “unserviceable” due to safety violations.

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During a follow-up inspection on July 16, IDHS found that “repairs on the two original cars in question had not been completed” and that there were additional code violations. These included maintenance violations such as “missing belt fasteners” and “damage to the passenger cars” and “assembly and handling violations” such as “warped” diamond plate floors and “broken rivets.”

He noted that the ride “cannot be used in any way until it passes an IDHS compliance check.”

The Dubois County 4-H Council announced via Facebook on Monday, July 15, that it would be “removing rides” from the Dubois County Fairgrounds “for the remainder of the week” after being “made aware of a situation that occurred at the fairground.”

The district council did not provide details of the incident but noted that “safety” was its top priority.

“As a council, we are doing our best to keep the community safe and make the fair as good as possible for everyone involved,” it said in a statement. “Thank you for your understanding and patience as we navigate this situation.”

The Dubois County Council did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on the incident.

The fair is scheduled to run until July 20. It is unclear whether the rides will return to the fair.