Tower topples on Cass fair ride
Midway closes in Pine River after second mishap hurts teens
PINE RIVER -- As many as 13 people were injured Thursday and Friday on carnival rides at the Cass County Fair in Pine River.
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Friday evening, a spinning ride collapsed as teen-agers were being loaded onto the swings, Philip Moran, Pine River police officer, said Saturday morning.
Between eight and 10 people were treated and released Friday night at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Brainerd, said Tom Prusak, hospital administrator.
Three children suffered injuries Thursday night after receiving electrical shocks from a malfunctioning gravity ride.
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In Friday's incident, the center tower toppled on the spinning ride as teen-agers were being loaded onto it, dropping them on the ground, said Moran. It was not spinning at the time, he said.
Some bolts apparently were missing between the upper and lower sections of the spinning ride center tower, but it is not known at this time whether the bolts fell out or someone forgot to insert them, Moran said.
The Cass County Sheriff's Department and Pine River Police Department are jointly investigating.
The Cass County Fair at Pine River is operated by the Pine River Fair Board. This carnival, run by Minnesota Magic Midway Carnival, is different from the one the fair board has hired in past years.
In a news release issued Saturday morning by Terri Foster, Cass County Agricultural Association, the fair board demanded Friday night after the second accident that Magic Midway close all rides and leave the fairgrounds.
"Minnesota Magic Midway Carnival did cooperate fully with the board's decision," according
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