Around 21:15 on Sunday, according to the original report from New Delhi Television (NDTV), a drop tower at a fair in Mohali, in the Indian state of Punjab, suddenly malfunctioned.
The circular platform where riders were seated had reached the top of the vertical structure when it abruptly dropped to the ground, with nothing to break its 50-feet fall.
The “free fall” is a characteristic feature of a drop tower, which brings riders hundreds of feet above the ground before plummeting them to earth at high speed.
But a key part of the experience is the sudden deceleration when the brakes are pulled over the tower’s free fall, and riders are gently returned to the ground before dismounting.
That didn’t happen on Sunday, when the Mohali’s drop tower violently plunged its riders to the ground. The video shows riders bouncing violently against the ground, with some being pulled out of their seats by the strength of the whiplash.
According to English-language local newspaper the Business Standard some 50 people were on board of the 50-feet tall ride.
TV9 Journalist Nikhil Choudhary tweeted that 16 people were injured and hospitalized after the incident, while the Hindustan Times wrote that ten people were “critically injured.”
The Hindustan Times wrote that several children involved in the incident were being treated at Fortis Hospital, and that most of those injured had suffered neck, back and jaw injuries. There were no reported fatalities.
There have been no further details on why the fair malfunctioned on Sunday. The fair organizers said the malfunctioning was due to a “technical issue” and are cooperating with police, according to the Hindustan Times.
One of the organizers of the fair told the newspaper that they had operated the ride before and nothing like Sunday’s incident had ever happened.
Locals present at the scene of the incident reported that there were no safety measures at the fair, and that ambulances didn’t immediately arrive to take care of those injured.
An investigation in the incident is currently under way.
The fair was reportedly expected to end on Sunday but had received permission to be extended until September 11.
Incidents at theme parks and carnival fairs are overall rare, though they can happen, and they can be deadly.
In Florida, a teenager plunged to his death in March after falling from a 400-feet high drop tower at the Orlando ICON Park. His death was ruled accidental, though investigators found the 14-year-old boy should have not been allowed on the ride.
