Wisconsin—12-year-old Teagan Marti was critically injured this summer while enjoying the Wisconsin Dells amusement park. Teagan, who is from Florida, was riding Terminal Velocity, a free-fall ride at Extreme World at the amusement park. According to reports, Teagan fell 100 feet to the ground while on the ride when the operator failed to properly release her from the platform and into an elevated safety net. Three days later the police concluded that the park operator was to blame for Teagan’s extensive injuries, including paralysis.
Charles A. Carnell was arrested on Wednesday, August 18 on charges of first-degree reckless injury. After his initial court appearance, his bail was set at $1,000 along with stipulations that he not contact Teagan or her family as well as forbiddance from operating, managing, or supervising any Extreme World rides. According to the police complaint, Carnell was supposed to look over the side of the ride to the ground below to receive an “all clear” signal from the ground operator. However, Carnell admits he did not do that and that he “totally blanked it out and didn’t know why”.
According to reports, when police arrived on the scene of the incident, Teagan’s lips were blue, her skin was gray, and there was blood coming from her ears, nose, and mouth. She was taken to the American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison, WI by helicopter and has successfully completed several surgeries to repair her fractured spine and pelvis. Her family also reported that she is able to move both hands and a few toes, but is expected to stay in the hospital for an indefinite amount of time.
