Texas Teen Dies After Amusement Ride Malfunction

EL PASO, TX -- A 16-year-old girl died over the weekend after the carnival ride she was on malfunctioned and slammed her onto a metal barricade.

ABC News reports there were only three girls on the ride called The Sizzler, an attraction that spins and rotates. The

carnival ride was the featured attraction for an event last Friday staged by St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church to celebrate Dia de los Niños, a Mexican holiday honoring the world's children.

But the day took a tragic turn when the ride malfunctioned and slammed into the barricade. Some people on the scene tried to save the girl with CPR before an ambulance arrived, but the teen succumbed to her injuries after being taken to the hospital.

A 15-year-old friend of the victim was treated for minor injuries.

Parishioner Isabel Estrada told the El Paso Times the parish priest organized the event to provide a fun day for members of his church and the community at large.

“He is a very good priest," the woman told the newspaper. "He wanted to do something for Dia de los Niños, Who would have thought something like this would happen?”

The tragedy is the second mishap involving an amusement ride to make headlines in Texas. In what later became a viral video, an Amarillo boy was seen nearly falling out of a roller coaster when his seat belt came undone.

Roller coaster accidents aren't that uncommon. KNUE-TV noted that there have been several deaths on "Sizzler" rides throughout the country, including in Austin.

In Arlington three years ago, a woman was killed after falling out of a roller coaster at Six Flags. Witnesses said the woman fell after the safety bar was released during a dip. Family members later said the woman had questioned whether she was securely fastened before the ride started.

At another Six Flags in California, a ten-year-old girl lost consciousness while she was on the Magic Mountain ride, an amusement ride featuring a vertical loop, and 113-foot hill reaching speeds of up to 55 mph.

Theme park officials later said the death was likely caused by a preexisting medical condition rather than it being ride-related.