Video: Visitors stranded upside-down after amusement park ride stops mid-air

Screengrab from a video uploaded on Twitter by @KennethCW3.

Riders were left dangling upside-down after an amusement park ride malfunctioned in Pennsylvania on Monday.

The Aero 360 ride at Kennywood amusement park in Pennsylvania stopped abruptly, turning what should have been a fun experience into a nightmare for guests, ABC News reported. Some eyewitnesses at the scene recounted riders screaming for help as they dangled mid-air.

Maintenance staff helped evacuate the riders. No one was injured in the incident, but three people visited the first aid center as a precaution. It is not clear how long the riders were stuck mid-air before they were rescued – some witnesses put the time to 5 minutes while others said it was longer.

Shocking footage that has emerged online shows the riders stranded mid-air as a crowd of onlookers gathered beneath.

People stuck on the Aero 360 at Kennywood earlier today. pic.twitter.com/1oPfgG09v9

— Ken (@KennethCW3) May 30, 2022

“Maintenance staff responded, quickly brought the ride back to its designated rest position, and safely evacuated the riders,” Kennywood General Manager Mark Pauls said in a statement, as quoted by CBS News. “Safety is our first and foremost priority. The ride remains closed while a review of the incident is conducted,” the statement said.

On its website, Kennywood Park says the Aero 360 offers guests the chance to “travel upside down while riding the iconic Kennywood arrows” as “the arrows swing higher and higher with each pendulum motion, culminating in a 360 degree over-the-top experience.”

A park spokesperson told CBS News that the ride had been inspected before the park opened on Monday, as is the rule with every ride. Each ride must pass inspection before it can operate, the spokesperson said.