Authorities in Baja California Sur, Mexico, are investigating ride safety after 18-year-old Gabriela Rodriguez Tezoco died after falling off a local carnival ride.
Ms. Rodriguez Tezoco was attending a festival in Los Cabos, Mexico, on Tuesday night when she got on a pendulum ride, according to Mexican news outlet Expreso. She fell from her side as the ride was moving and was injured.
The Los Cabos City Council said on social media Wednesday morning that Ms. Rodriguez Tezoco subsequently died of her injuries, and the Baja California Sur State Attorney General’s Office said in a release Wednesday that it would be investigating the incident. The ride was seized and shut down.
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The attorney general’s office said “specialized experts in architecture, engineering, and safety are conducting assessments to determine the probable causes of the malfunction or collapse, as well as to verify whether the required operational safety protocols were followed,” as translated from Spanish.
Los Cabos officials also replaced the head of the Municipal Directorate of Civil Protection and Risk Management, Francisco Cota Marquez, in the aftermath of the incident. The new acting head is Diego Camacho Hale, according to local news outlet Peninsular Digital.
The change is meant to help aid the state attorney general’s office in its investigations, according to Peninsular Digital.
Ms. Rodriguez Tezoco’s death came just days after the death of Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem at Six Flags Over Georgia near Atlanta. Mr. Kariem was riding the Goliath roller coaster on Oct. 12 when he was thrown from the attraction, resulting in his death. The ride has been closed down since.
In the aftermath of the incident, Six Flags shuttered nine similar rides across its portfolio of North American parks.
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