Brighton pier ride accident - teenage boy treated in hospital

He was taken away on a stretcher after sustaining an injury to his leg.

Each seat on the ride is designed to look like an aeroplane, but one of the decorative aeroplane attachments surrounding a seat came loose and fell off.

This can be seen in the picture below, as the attachment for the green seat is missing.

Police, firefighters and the ambulance service are at the scene.

A spokesman for East Sussex Fire and Rescue said: "We were called at 3.06pm after reports of part of a ride coming loose.

"We currently have fire fighters from Roedean on the scene."

A passerby, who did not wish to be named, said: "A boy who looked in his mid-teens was being taken off the pier on a stretcher.

"He was wincing and the ambulance crews with him gave him a pump to take breaths from."

Roger Thorne, 73, and his wife Anne, 78, saw emergency services rush to the ride after the boy was injured.

He said: "We saw kids on the ride just half an hour before it happened.

"It flips upside down with a lot of momentum.

"When we were walking back to the pier we saw paaramedics with a stretcher running up the pier."

Anne added: "Another paramedic was on a quad bike.

"She grabbed a bag and ran over to behind the railings."

A spokesman for South East Coast Ambulance Service said: "We have a vehicle at Brighton Palace Pier after an incident with a ride.

"There is one male, teenage patient with a leg injury.

"We have our Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) en route."

The service later added: “South East Coast Ambulance Service has responded to an incident on Brighton Pier today in which it was reported, at approximately 3pm, that a piece of a ride had come loose.

"A male teenager has been taken to hospital with a leg injury.

"Others were shaken but uninjured. We are now clear from the scene.”

The incident happened on a ride called the Air Race.

On the Brighton Palace Pier website the Air Race is described as taking riders "on an amazing journey which replicates the experiences and sensations of an acrobatic aeroplane flight, banks, loops, dives and weightlessness that will test even the most experienced of thrillseekers".

Anne Ackord, chief executive officer of The Brighton Pier Group said nothing like this has ever happened before.

She said: "This is very rare for something to be unexplained.

"The operator did the right thing by pressing the emergency button as part of our well rehearsed crisis plan.

"We have spoken with the manufacturer who will be flying in from Italy for an investigation.

"One gentleman is being treated for injuries to his leg."

A spokesman for Sussex Police said: "Police and other emergency services are attending Brighton Palace Pier after a fairground ride was reported to have failed at about 3pm on Monday.

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"Initial indications are that four people have sustained injuries that are not thought to be serious at this time. 

"There are currently no further details." 

The incident is ongoing.

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