The safety of carnival riders will continue to be paramount when Westerner Days comes to town, says the chief executive officer and general manager of Westerner Park.
John Harms expressed no qualms about the safety of the rides. West Coast Amusements will return to Westerner Days on July 20 to 24.
It’s had a contract for about 11 years to run the midway rides at the fair and since then there’s been no midway problems where someone has been injured, Harms said.
A total of 41 rides will be featured this year, including three new ones.
“They’re inspected daily — before anyone gets on them in the mornings,” said Harms on Thursday. “Safety is paramount with any of the ride operators.”
New rules put in place in March by Alberta Municipal Affairs following a ride mishap at last July’s Calgary Stampede won’t make a difference here, Harms said. “All the rides are inspected as soon as they come into Alberta,” Harms said.
“If they leave Alberta and come back, they are re-inspected. Our ride operators have been more than compliant with the new legislation all along. “We don’t foresee any impact on Westerner Days.”
The government rules were developed as a result of the province’s investigation into the Scorpion ride incident on July 16, 2010, at the Calgary Stampede.
Ten people were injured, six of whom were sent to hospital.
Five measures must now take place:
• Owners must retain onsite inspection reports from all jurisdictions in which an amusement ride has operated for five years. They must complete an owner and Alberta Safety Codes officer checklist for each ride.
• Once a ride deficiency is detected, owners must confirm the ride manufacturer has evaluated the information and reported findings to the owner and safety codes officer. If metal fatigue is detected on a ride, independent non-destructive testing will be conducted on the entire ride and repairs made to any defects.
• Older rides would be considered for additional comprehensive non-destructive testing.
Harms figures that these new measures were introduced because there are less than reputable operators out there.
But he added that wasn’t the case in regards to the Scorpion ride run by North American Midway Entertainment.
“That Scorpion ride had undergone non-destructive testing, had undergone daily inspection,” he said.
ltester@www.reddeeradvocate.com