A group of park visitors at Knott’s Berry Farm were stuck in the air for hours Monday afternoon after the ride came to an abrupt stop.
According to park officials, the “Sol Spin” stopped mid-cycle, around 2 p.m., due to technical difficulties.
SkyCal flew over the park around 4 p.m. while rescue operations were underway.
Some riders were stuck in a sideways position, but none were upside down.
The park said in a statement to CBS News: “We followed the manufacturer’s emergency procedures and (our) emergency procedures to safely evacuate the 22 guests at 4:30 p.m. Out of an abundance of caution, two female guests were taken to hospital. further evaluation.” The extent of their possible injuries was unclear.
Crew members could be seen working on the side of the ride just before they used cables to stabilize the rotating arms and then slowly lowered the ride to the starting position.
According to Knott’s website, Sol Spin is a “thrill ride for the brave! Sol Spin sends guests on a thrilling adventure more than six stories high as they spin in all directions on one of six spinning arms.”
The Orange County Fire Department said the incident was handled entirely by park officials.
