JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Some of the riders at the Jax Fair are on pins and needles before taking off from the ground, excited for the ride.
But Vanessa Brough tells me what her little brother experienced Saturday was no thrill.
“Everybody thought he was just yelling because of the ride,” Brough said.
But his other sister Linda Brough says he was yelling because he was in pain.
The family says the 11-year-old was stuck with a sewing needle that had been pushed in the foam of the Ali Baba ride at the Jacksonville fair.
“He had several puncture marks in his stomach,” said Linda Brough.
“They looked and seen his stomach was bleeding,” said Vanessa Brough.
Then he was taken to the hospital for a series of tests.
“My brother was traumatized,” said Vanessa Brough.
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Action News Brittany Jones got on the ride herself, strapped in the same seat.
The foamy piece on the strap is where the family said the needle was stuck in.
Jones said the foam fit really close to her body.
The fair spokesperson Gayle Hart says it's designed to keep you secure. But what she doesn't know is how the needle ended up on this ride.
“We're very concerned but you just don't know… we take all this very seriously,” said Hart.
The fair owner told Action News his staff immediately checked all rides with foam and padding like this one once they found out about the incident.
The fair owner says all the rides are checked for safety every morning, but the family says it doesn’t know how the needle fell underneath the radar.
“Just check your seat before you sit down,” said Linda Brough.
WJAX
