Girl, 12, forced to jump off Australia's tallest ride after seatbelt malfunction

24 May 2023 , 09:24

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Holly fractured her ankle (Image: 9News)

A child who was on a ride dubbed Australia's 'tallest travelling freefall' has described the moment she decided to jump in a desperate bid to stay alive as the harness holding her in malfunctioned.

Holly Brown and her friend Ava were the only two riders of the Mega Drop and having already had a go earlier in the day felt they knew what to expect.

The Mega Drop is described as the 'ultimate ride experience', dropping users from more than 130ft in the air, reaching speeds of 130mph.

But as the ride started to move, Holly, 12, realised both hers and Ava's seat restraints were not locked into place.

Holly said that at first she thought it was a joke but when she realised it wasn't, the magnitude of the situation set in.

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"I was really scared, like really, really scared," she said.

The seat restraint had flung up above her head and she was unable to reach it, while Ava's was still down over her shoulders it was also not in place and she desperately pulled it to her chest.

Mega Drop - a ride that markets itself as Australia's 'tallest travelling freefall ride' (9News)

Holly said: "So I thought, 'Well, I either jump and maybe I break a few bones or I go up and die'.

"So I was like, 'You know what, breaking bones is better than losing my life', so I jumped."

Eyewitness Danielle Snow who was at he Kilcoy Show in Queensland, comforted Holly after her jump and said the ride operator slipped and fell about three metres before yelling at Ava and Holly to jump.

Ava didn't jump, was unbuckled and alone travelling up the tower before the worker eventually hit the emergency stop button and brought the ride to a halt, saving Ava.

"Ava thought Holly had died," Ms Snow said. "Because from the height, she just assumed that she would have died, that she wouldn't have survived that."

The youngster was stuck on the ride, not knowing if Holly was safe, as paramedics rushed to treat her friend on the ground.

Holly fractured her foot and is recovering at home.

The incident is being investigated by Queensland Workplace Health and Safety.

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