As a terrifying and deadly accident at an Ohio carnival is being investigated, the crash is causing concerns in Connecticut.
NBC Connecticut got the chance to follow inspectors with the Connecticut State Police Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit as they checked all 13 of the rides at the Savin Rock Festival in West Haven.
Detective Paul Makuc, with the Connecticut State Police Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit, started with the safety restraints on the Dragon Wagon.
"I’m just ensuring that the lap bars are all in proper working order," Makuc said. "We’re inspecting also for any sharp edges or any hazards that may exist inside the cars."
To make sure the cars are attached securely together.
"We inspect just to make sure that all the welds are tight, all the bolts are connected to cars together are tight," the detective said.
Brian Kaman, of New Haven, plans to attend the festival. He watched the inspectors checking the rides.
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"These guys take it seriously. No one wants anybody to get hurt," Kaman said.
George Marenna III, the owner of Marenna Amusements, doesn’t want that either. Before State Police begins their inspection, they have their own safety measures they have to check for.
"We make sure it’s properly assembled. We have a training course for our crew in the beginning of the season to make sure they know how to set up the ride from start to finish. There’s actually a manual with each piece of equipment," Marenna said.
Marenna said they also have to make sure the ground is level for every ride.
Connecticut State Police said the safety check passed for the rides at the Savin Rock Festival.
The ride, the Fireball, was inspected the same day of the malfunction in Ohio and everything was rated satisfactory.
NBC Connecticut reached out to a firm that performs forensic investigations of amusement accidents like the one in Ohio.
Jamie Williams, PhD with Robson Forensic out of Lancaster in Pennsylvania said they would typically get called in after first responders finished their work at the scene.
Though her team hasn't been activated to Ohio, she explained pinning down a cause.
"Whether metallic, plastic or otherwise, was this a slow process that led to their failures or was there some acute immediate event that caused either the connecting components to fall apart and disassemble or did something actually fracture or break?" Williams explained.
Ohio's state fair, like many fairs in Connecticut, aren't permanent; They travel and Williams said that can put stress on parts.
"Anytime you have a device of this magnitude repeatedly assembled and disassembled and reassembled you run into the opportunity where metallic and plastic components, during the assembly and disassembly process can be exposed to stresses that can cause damage," Williams said.
Williams said there are other impacts during the transporting of rides that can affect the equipment.
"There are environmental conditions that can play a role in how well they're able to bear or transfer a load. You also have situations where during travel via truck, where you could have instances of vibrations, that could loosen different aspects," Williams told the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters.
Williams explained assembly and inspection would include checking for connections and possible damage.
The NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters requested the state of Ohio's inspection of the Fireball. All items were satisfactory.
Documents also show last October, an engineering firm visually inspected the ride's structural components. They did an ultrasonic examination of 24 gondola arm pins and no defects were found.
Williams said in addition to examining the structure of the ride, investigators will look at the debris field and how far away the pieces were spread out from the ride.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission tells the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters they too are investigating.
