A 24-year-old woman died after she allegedly fell off an amusement park ride in southwest Delhi’s Kapashera on Thursday evening, police said on Saturday, adding that they were unsure of why she was flung off what is known as a top spin when it was at its highest — some 25 feet above the ground.
The incident took place at the Fun N Food Water and Amusement Park, part of which was sealed following Thursday’s tragedy.
Police officers said they were still establishing if over-the-shoulder restraints or the two seatbelts that are usually strapped onto people came loose. The woman was identified as Priyanka Rawat, who was visiting the amusement park with her fiance, Nikhil Singh, 26.
Investigators suspect a mechanical fault in the ride may have caused the fall. “We have registered a case and are probing it to ascertain the circumstances under which the accident happened. Prima facie, it appears that there were some mechanical faults in the safety belts that may have malfunctioned. The exact reason will be known after the mechanical inspection and investigation,” said deputy commissioner of police (southwest) Surendra Choudhary.
The couple arrived at the facility around 1pm and the incident happened around 6.15pm. Singh, one of the prime witnesses, alleged that the security mechanisms, including the belts, were fine, but the staffer did not physically check if these were effectively locked.
{{/usCountry}}The couple arrived at the facility around 1pm and the incident happened around 6.15pm. Singh, one of the prime witnesses, alleged that the security mechanisms, including the belts, were fine, but the staffer did not physically check if these were effectively locked.
{{/usCountry}}He described the restraints as being automated before they are locked into place by the operator, and the seatbelts being such that the person strapped in could buckle or unbuckle it. Singh, who filed the complaint, said there were three security measures for each seat — a seatbelt each around the legs and the body and an over-the-shoulder restraint.
“Another guest seated next to us even asked the staffer if the harnesses were working properly. The staffer said everything was fine and that he had been overseeing the operations of the ride for the past 18 years,” he told HT.
A case of negligent conduct with respect to machinery and causing death by negligence was registered at the Kapashera police station on Singh’s complaint. While the Fun N Food Water and Amusement Park has been mentioned as the incident spot in the contents of the first information report (FIR), nobody was named as a suspect, known or unknown. HT has seen a copy of the FIR.
The amusement rides were shut for investigation purposes, but the section with water rides remained open to customers, police and the management of the recreational facility said.
Singh said that on Thursday, when they got onto the ride, they did as they were told and the metal restraints too were locked into place. “As the ride started spinning, I closed my eyes. Barely 15 seconds later, I heard people screaming. When I opened my eyes, I saw Priyanka on the ground. They brought the ride down, and we took her to a local hospital in an ambulance. She was referred to a bigger hospital, but she was declared on arrival,” he said.
Santokh Singh Chawla, the owner of Fun N Food Water and Amusement Park, said that he had been operating the recreational facility since 1992, and this was the first such accident at the facility.
“I am not denying that a guest lost her life at our facility. We informed the police immediately after the accident and accompanied the police personnel in carrying out the inspection and other proceedings related to the case. We are cooperating with the police in their investigation. The amusement park section has been closed after the accident. We will meet the victim’s family,” said Chawla.
Rawat lived with her family in the government flats at Satya Marg in central Delhi. She worked as a salesperson in a private insurance company at Bhikaji Cama Place in south Delhi. She got engaged to Singh, who works as a chef at a supermarket in Cyprus, in January 2023.
Police said they sealed the ride and collected the CCTV footage of the incident for further probe. The medicolegal certificate of the victim showed ENT bleeding and visible injuries such as lacerations and abrasions on her limbs. Her body was handed over to her family after an autopsy at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, said DCP Choudhary.