New Jersey

10-Year-Old Girl Dies After Falling From Ride at South Jersey Festival

The girl died of her injuries after falling from a ride at the Deerfield Township Harvest Festival

EDITOR'S NOTE: An update to the investigation and new statements Monday from the amusement ride owner can be found HERE.

A 10-year-old girl died after she fell from a ride at a South Jersey festival, police confirmed Sunday.

Police responded to the Deerfield Township Harvest Festival in Cumberland County around 6:16 p.m. Saturday after someone reported that the girl had fallen off a ride, New Jersey State Police trooper Charles Marchan said.

The girl fell from what the New Jersey State Police described on Facebook as "a Wisdom Super Sizzler amusement park ride" called "Extreme." She was airlifted to Cooper Hospital, where she was pronounced dead from her injuries at 7:20 p.m.

The cause of the accident remains under investigation.

In New Jersey, amusement ride manufacturers are required to be certified by the Bureau of Construction Project Review before they can sell their rides for the purposes of operation, according to the state Department of Community Affairs.

The owners of the rides, meanwhile, are required to apply for annual permits. "The annual permit assures that the ride is inspected annually and the owner has met all outstanding violations and has proper insurance for the duration of operation under the annual permit," according to the state community affairs department.

Festival organizers originally said on Facebook that all festival activities except a scheduled parade would still go on Sunday. However, Skelly's Amusements, the festival's ride operator, said on Facebook that it would not operate other rides despite being granted permission to do so.

"Even though we have been given permission to operate the other rides by the state, we don't have it in our heart," the Skelly's Amusements wrote.

Following the announcement by the ride operators, festival organizers issued another statement on Facebook saying that their thoughts and prayers were with the girl's family and that the festival would go on without rides or games.

"The festival will be open today to offer a place for the community to come together in [the] wake of this tragedy," the organizers wrote.

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