A joy ride for a seventh standard student Surya of Anuppanadi in Madurai turned tragic when a giant wheel collapsed at a private exhibition here on Wednesday night.
Police said that K. Surya, a school student residing with his grandmother in Meenakshipuram, had gone to the exhibition, which was being held as part of the ‘Aani’ festival at a school playground in Chokalingapuram here, with friends from the neighbourhood.
After getting a seat on the giant wheel, the little boy tightly held on to the side handle. When the wheel was on its second round, it suddenly collapsed much to the shock of the huge crowd at the exhibition.
In the melee, nothing was clear as panic prevailed for some time. People were seen running outside the ground as there was noise everywhere. “It took at least 15 minutes to ascertain that there was a casualty as many remained unconscious due to injuries,” police added.
After taking Surya to hospital, the police realised that the boy had died at least 30 minutes earlier. Meanwhile, two persons, who were injured, were admitted to the government hospital here. According to them, the giant wheel operator had allegedly allowed more number of people than the maximum load it could take. “At the time of accident, we were sitting atop the giant wheel and suddenly it collapsed like a pack of cards,” Mookan, a local resident, claimed.
Probably, at the time of the accident, the little boy might have been caught in between the wheels , a police officer, who was conducting inquiries at the spot, told reporters on Thursday and added that a case had been registered against three persons, including the giant wheel operator identified as Chandrasekar of Thanjavur.
On hearing about the death, Surya’s family members and relatives arrived here and demanded the arrest of the giant wheel operator. Uneasy calm prevailed on the school grounds for sometime as the relatives squatted on the Tiruchuli Road.
Assurance
However, they dispersed after the police and revenue officials assured them of stern action against the accused.
A senior police officer in Virudhunagar district said that the organisers of exhibitions during temple festivals should ensure that the giant wheels were in proper shape as otherwise it would amount to negligence.
