Watch: Moment ‘tsunami ride’ collapsed at Surajkund International Crafts Fair; cop dead, 13 injured | Gurgaon News

GURGAON: A police inspector died and 13 people were injured after an electrical swing, locally called ‘tsunami ride’, collapsed at the 39th Surajkund International Crafts Fair on Saturday evening, triggering panic and a brief melee at the venue.Police said the swing collapsed around 6.30pm while operating at full speed with at least 26 people on board. It came unhinged suddenly, tilted to one side, and was left hanging mid-air. With several riders strapped to the seats trapped inside, inspector Jagdish Prasad, the duty in-charge of the amusement zone, rushed to help rescue them. But within minutes, the swing collapsed completely, trapping Prasad underneath and causing fatal head and facial injuries.Raghav, a stall owner on the fairground, said he heard a loud noise followed by screams. “I saw several people stuck on the swing after its hook snapped from one side. I climbed the hanging swing and rescued seven to eight people.”The railing fell on Raghav as the swing collapsed completely, injuring his shoulder. “Some of the people on the ride fell on the ground and were injured,” he said. Eight of the injured were taken to Supreme Hospital and others to BK Civil Hospital in Faridabad using ambulances stationed at the mela site. Some police personnel also sustained minor injuries during the rescue effort. Later in the evening, a forensics team reached the fairground for an investigation.Deputy commissioner Ayush Sinha said authorities would probe if there was a mechanical or electrical failure that led to the collapse. “An FIR has been lodged and a committee, to be headed by the ADC, has been set up. The committee will probe the incident and fix responsibility to ensure such incidents don’t occur again”, he said. In a post on X, chief minister Nayab Saini said he was deeply saddened by the accident. “I express my heartfelt condolences to the family of the person who lost his life in this incident. At the same time, necessary directions have been issued to the concerned authorities for the appropriate and immediate treatment of the injured individuals. The Haryana govt is fully committed, with utmost promptness and sensitivity, to providing all possible assistance to the injured and their families,” he wrote.Arvind Sharma, cabinet minister for heritage and tourism, said the state will provide all possible help to victims. “I visited the victims and they are all stable.” While the amusement area was sealed after the accident, events scheduled for the weekend, including a performance by Punjabi singer Gurdas Maan on Sunday, remain unchanged. Around three hours before the accident, a gate near the food court at the venue collapsed due to strong winds, leaving at least one person injured. Officials said the incident occurred as a large number of people were moving between shops inside the fairgrounds. Sources claimed the designer gate had been leaning for some time, but no corrective action was taken, leading to its sudden collapse. The visitor hit by the falling gate and rushed to a nearby hospital. After the debris was removed, normal movement inside the mela resumed. Organised by Surajkund Mela Authority and Haryana Tourism in collaboration with Union ministries of tourism, textiles, culture and external affairs, the mela was inaugurated on Jan 31 this year and will continue till Feb 15.The tragedy, meanwhile, reignited the debate around concerns over regulation and maintenance of amusement rides at fairs. In Jan this year, a giant “Dragon Swing” at Maharaj No Melo fair in Madhya Pradesh’s Jhabua district snapped while in motion, injuring 14 schoolchildren, who were on the ride at the time. Officials said the children were taken to the district hospital, where most were treated for fractures and bruises. Eyewitnesses and authorities pointed to potential safety lapses and possible overloading of the ride.Surajkund also had its fair share of accidents. A similar swing accident at the fair in 2001 left three people dead, including an eight-year-old child, and 18 injured when an electrically powered swing became stuck at its apex, and riders fell to the ground. Police at the time attributed the collapse to a mechanical fault and registered negligence charges against operators.