Child, 9, was unloading B.C. carnival Zipper when drunk patron fell and broke bones
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A safety agency says a nine-year-old child was helping operate a carnival ride in Port Hardy, B.C., this spring when an intoxicated woman fell from a carriage and broke several bones.
Technical Safety BC says in an investigation report into the May 31 incident that the patron fell about two metres when the Zipper ride was activated prematurely during unloading, which “ejected the unsecured rider onto the ground below.”
It says the same patron had been thrown out of the carnival the day before, noting that drunk patrons are a “common” problem at carnivals.
“It was common practice to not ‘disallow’ intoxicated patrons to ride to prevent conflict between patrons and attendants,” the report says.
The report says the nine-year-old ride attendant was loading and unloading the Zipper because their father, the carnival’s foreman, had left to “wash up.”
The report says the child described the passenger who fell as “half asleep and half awake,” but the young attendant wasn’t confident or assertive enough to stop the visibly intoxicated woman from going on the ride.
The report also says that the passenger and their companion had a bottle of alcohol with them when they boarded.
It says when the ride was being unloaded, one passenger disembarked successfully, but the drunk woman took longer, and was unrestrained with the door open when the ride was activated to move the next carriage into the deboarding position.
The summary of an interview with the child’s father says: “The child explained to their mother and the RCMP that when they were loading the lady was taking forever to get out.”
The report, issued last month, lists contributing factors including that attendants have “no formal training” on dealing with drunk passengers, the child attendant’s inexperience, and the lack of a mechanical override preventing activation of the 52-year-old Zipper when restraints had been opened.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2025.