Ferris wheel at Orlando’s ICON Park loses power, dozens rescued from 400-foot-tall ride
Several people were rescued from the ride at Orlando ICON Park Saturday evening following a power outage, Orange County Fire Rescue reported.
The department said crews responded to reports of a power failure at the Orlando Wheel around 6: 20 p.m. There were 20 occupied pods on the Ferris wheel when it lost power, trapping 62 people on the ride. Photos and videos posted on social media showed that there was a small fire at its base, which caused it to lose power and malfunction.
Orange County Fire Rescue Public Information Officer Ashley Gipson said over 80 firefighters responded to the park. To rescue the riders, they had the to manually maneuver the wheel to reach each pod.
ORLANDO AMUSEMENT PARK SUSPENDS RIDE WHERE CUSTOMERS SHOOT TARGETS WHILE PERCHED WITH LASER GUNS
Firefighters responded to Orlando’s ICON Park to rescue 62 riders stuck on the Ferris wheel after it lost power on New Year’s Eve.
(momandpaparazzi.com)
At 10: 43 p.m., OCFR confirmed on Twitter all pods were clear, and all 62 riders were safe. Gipson stated that there were no injuries or transports to the hospital.
All the rescue climbers from the department were on duty at the park to assist in the evacuations. Orange County Fire Rescue posted on Twitter that additional climbers from the department were also present at the park to assist with evacuations.
ORLANDO FREEFALL: OPERATING GROUP PLANS TO TAKE DOWN RIDE AFTER TEEN’S AMUSEMENT PARK DEATH
According to the theme park’s website, the Orlando Wheel is 400-feet tall, and it takes 18 minutes to complete the ride. It opened in 2015 after three years of construction.
In a statement to Fox 35 Orlando, ICON Park confirmed the Wheel lost power and park officials were working with first responders to evacuate the riders.
Orange County Fire Rescue crews manually operate the Ferris wheel at ICON park to rescue riders from power failure.
(Orange County Fire Rescue)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
In March 2022, ICON Park experienced tragedy when 14-year-old Tyre Sampson fell to his death from the Orlando Freefall, a drop tower ride at the park. Sampson was on spring break in the city with a family from St. Louis, Missouri. The ride was shut down immediately after Sampson’s passing and was reopened in October.
I have been writing professionally for over 20 years and have a deep understanding of the psychological and emotional elements that affect people. I’m an experienced ghostwriter and editor, as well as an award-winning author of five novels.
