Terror at a height of 30 meters: Stuck for hours in the air at an amusement park
23 people were trapped on a high-altitude carousel at a summer festival in Hamburg. After hours, the ride was restarted and the passengers were rescued unharmed.
Those who come to an amusement festival expect thrills, but not necessarily to get stuck tens of meters above the ground. 23 people remained for about three hours on a ride that stopped suddenly in Hamburg, Germany. According to the German newspaper Die Zeit, the malfunction occurred around 21:00, and the passengers were released only after midnight, when the ride was restarted. The passengers boarded the Nordic Tower, a chain carousel 80 meters high, and stopped when the chairs were about 30 meters above the ground. The passengers were buckled into their seats and could not get down on their own.
When the ride stopped, police and fire crews were called to the scene, and they began, together with the ride operators, to examine how to lower the passengers safely. At the same time, rescuers trained for work at heights were also on standby in case it became necessary to reach the passengers manually. The malfunction occurred at the Heiligengeistfeld complex, where the Hamburger Sommerdom festival, a large amusement fair in the city, is held. As the hours passed and temperatures dropped, rescue forces also prepared for the possibility that the passengers would suffer from the cold. Fire crews provided them with blankets, and medical readiness was maintained at the site. Some of the passengers required observation due to fears of mild hypothermia.
At the same time, the possibility of carrying out a rescue using special equipment was examined, in case it would not be possible to restart the ride. The rescue teams were required to choose between waiting for a mechanical solution and using rescue means that would allow reaching the chairs at height.
Eventually, shortly after midnight, the ride was restarted and the passengers were able to get off without the need for rescue by the firefighters. The rescue forces present at the scene assisted them in descending and continued to monitor their condition. All 23 passengers were located and registered, and no injuries were reported in the incident, according to the German broadcasting corporation.
At this stage, it was not reported what caused the malfunction, nor was a date published for the inspection of the ride or what steps will be taken before its return to operation. The incident occurred towards the end of the annual amusement fair in Hamburg, which this year lasted five weeks and is expected to end on Sunday.
