NC fair protocols same, but inspectors are 'buckling down'

Safety inspectors won’t be changing any of their routines at this week’s N.C. State Fair, a year after a disaster on the Vortex thrill ride injured five people.

But the accident’s pall is still heavy over the fairgrounds, where Ferris wheels and roller coasters already had risen up over the tents and trailers Monday afternoon.

N.C. Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler used the word “safety” more than practically any other word in a speech and interview Monday. That apparently has translated to renewed pressure on the squads of contractors and subcontractors who unfold the fair’s complex rides from truck trailers.

“We’re catchin’ hell left and right – they’re double- and triple-checking everything,” said Omar Knight of Raleigh, sitting beside the half-built Super Himalaya ride, the spider-web spokes of its engine still exposed.

“They’re really buckling down on people,” he said of those overlooking his work, from midway contractor Wade Shows Inc. on up.

Last year’s tragedy was hard to forget, both for its victims and its witnesses. The Vortex swung its huge arms into action as people tried to get off the ride on the second Thursday of the fair.

Four members of the Gorham family were among the people dropped to the metal decking. Anthony Gorham, who was visiting with his wife and child, suffered the most debilitating injuries and remains unable to work, according to a family representative.

The ride should never have operated while its lap-bars were unsecured, but the ride’s operators had bypassed those safety systems to keep the ride running through mechanical problems, according to reports from law enforcement and the state Department of Labor.

Tanya Wiley, a spokeswoman for the Gorhams’ attorney, Willie Gary, said the accident should have served as a call for changes to inspection protocol.

“Anytime someone is harmed, anytime someone is hurt – you would think a lesson would be learned – and in this particular instance, these people could have lost their lives,” she said.

‘More awareness’

But Troxler said there’s little to be changed.

“Certainly there’s more awareness (about fair safety) but could we change something, to absolutely nail it? I’m not sure that we could,” he said.

As it stands, the state’s inspections program calls for a complete review of each ride and its safety systems at the beginning of the fair.

State officials argue that those initial inspections are among the most stringent in the nation. But inspectors generally don’t return to rides to search for signs of after-the-fact damage or tampering, unless prompted by a malfunction or other incident.

In the Vortex case, Timothy Tutterrow and Joshua Macaroni are accused of installing cables that allowed the ride to run while its restraint bars were unsecured. The two made the modifications during the initial inspection and again one night during the fair, according to Tutterrow’s testimony in a Labor Department report.

Inspectors can’t always stop that kind of willful interference, according to Tom Chambers, who’s in charge of the state’s inspections for amusement rides and elevators.

This year, as in the past, his staff will walk the midways in search of unsafe conditions, reading operator’s daily reports and responding to tips from police and emergency responders. They won’t conduct random re-inspections, according to the department.

“We can’t be standing on every ride. We don’t have the personnel to certify a ride and (then) stand there with it,” Chambers said.

Instead, labor officials have argued that the most effective new deterrent against misbehaving ride operators may be punitive measures, such as the ongoing criminal and civil cases in the Vortex tampering.

“There has to be responsibility placed on the owner. They’re the front-line defense,” Chambers said.

Labor Commissioner Cherie Berry lobbied this year to multiply fines in similar incidents by 10 and to create a new felony in the case of willful violations that lead to injuries, according to her department. Senate Bill 594, an omnibus justice bill, stalled in committee.

Ken Martin, an expert in ride safety, said that North Carolina is still known for the stringency of its inspection program. Most states don’t keep inspections staff on-site, while North Carolina keeps three, and that “may have prevented incidents in the past,” he said.

‘You can bet on it’

The consequences of last October’s accident, meanwhile, are playing out in the courts. A lawsuit against the ride’s operator, Family Attractions Amusement LLC, and the larger midway company, Powers Great American Midways, is pending in Raleigh’s federal court. Family Attractions is not at the fair this year – “you can bet on it,” Troxler said.

A case involving Family Attractions also is pending in the state’s Office of Administrative Hearings, as are the felony assault charges against Tutterrow and Macaroni.

The Wake County District Attorney’s Office hopes to bring the cases to court early next year, after fair season has finished and the other cases are underway, according to Howard Cummings, assistant district attorney.

This story was originally published October 13, 2014 at 6:54 PM.