COLUMBUS, Ohio-- Rides at the Ohio State Fair reopened Sunday, just days after the Fire Ball attraction malfunctioned, killing a young man and injuring seven others.
The family of 18-year-old Tyler Jarrell, who died after he was flung off the Fire Ball ride Wednesday, is now seeking justice and answers for the death of their son. Now, they've hired an attorney, are pursuing a wrongful death lawsuit, and are moving quickly to make sure all evidence is preserved.
Mark Kitrick, the family's attorney, explains, "One worry is people saw it and might have heard something that might be a really important statement. Maybe that person's left town, or is going to leave-- they're visiting the fairgrounds and they're going to be gone in a few days. The more we can get information and evidence from all those involved.... a lot of people saw this, videoed it, heard things... the more we can put pieces of this puzzle together."
Kitrick says the family wants to know: how could a just-inspected amusement park ride apparently "fall apart" and "throw people off"? And: if riders had to wear safety belts, why didn't they hold?
"It's a fault issue, who's at fault," Kitrick continues, "I mean inspections, were they done properly? Was there a rush? Were they really done the way they should have been? Who assembled it and how did it get assembled in such a way to lead to this failure?"
Kitrick has already hired an accident reconstruction company and a local investigator to help him gather as much information and evidence as possible. He's not sure yet whether he'll file the lawsuit in common pleas or federal court, or what kind of compensation he'll seek for the family.