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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Carnival Ride That Killed Girl Had Passed Safety Check

Compiled From Wire Services

A carnival ride in which a 15-year-old girl was tossed to her death passed a safety inspection 10 days before the accident, officials said Friday.

Leslie Lane died Thursday after flying out of her seat and hitting a wall aboard the Himalaya ride at the Austin-Travis County Livestock Show and Rodeo.

The girl’s 9-year-old brother and a 16-year-old friend were treated for injuries.

Texas Department of Insurance spokesman Mark Hanna said Friday that the ride was last inspected March 9 by Bob G. Gill and Associates, a safety consulting firm in Brandon, Fla.

“They had done everything they needed to do,” Hanna said of carnival owners B and B Amusement Inc., a Yuma, Ariz., company.

In the Himalaya, riders sit in sled-like cars and are whipped around an undulating circular track. A lap-bar secures riders.

Investigators were trying to determine whether the ride was defective or if the girl somehow managed to slip out.