10 rescued from Indy Zoo’s Skyline Ride
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – A ride at the Indianapolis Zoo experienced a technical issue Thursday afternoon, leaving 10 people, including three children on board stuck and requiring rescue from firefighters.
The call came in around 12:05 p.m. at the Skyline Ride.
Indianapolis Zoo officials say there were three cars stopped on the ride, which is about 50 feet in the air. Indianapolis Fire Department crews were called to assist.
Officials say the ride stopped because a breaker switch malfunctioned and went off. IFD said they would attempt to restart the system, but then resorted to evacuating people from the cars. There were seven adults and three children stuck on three gondola cars.
Chopper 8 was over the scene when one of the cars began moving again then abruptly stopped, causing the car to shake.
Officials say that everyone on the ride was OK. Around 1:50 p.m. IFD was unloading the last car of the ride. There were two adults and two children on that last car. The rescue was completed shortly after 2 p.m.
This is not the first time the Skyline Ride has been stuck. On Oct. 12 the ride became stuck with six people on board.
An inspection was performed on the ride the following day. Following the inspection the ride was closed for the rest of the season.
A drive-shaft in the gearbox of the gondola broke, which caused the gondola to stop during the October incident, officials said. The drive-shaft was replaced and was properly working following the inspection.
According to the Indianapolis Zoo website, the ride offers views of the zoo and the city. It goes over the Simon Skjodt International Orangutan Center. The ride is open from mid-March through October. The ride typically lasts about eight minutes. Children under 10 years old are not permitted on the ride without an adult.
A total of five cars make up the ride. Only three had occupants inside when the ride stopped on Thursday.
Zoo officials said Thursday afternoon the ride’s safety systems “performed as designed.” The zoo also said the ride passed a state safety inspection last month.