Thrillseeking sisters who spent SEVEN hours trapped mid-air on Hull fair ride feared it would ‘plummet to the ground’
It was the first time that sisters Nicole and Laura went to Hull Fair together - with the trip ending in frustration
TWO sisters were left exhausted, cold and fearing they would 'plummet to the ground' after being stranded on a ride for more than seven hours when it broke down.
Nicole Blackett 14, and her sister Laura Fenwick, 20, had headed onto the Power Tower ride on Friday night, eager to make the most of their visit to the Hull Fair.
But the pair were left dangling mid-air for hours overnight when the ride stopped - with stranded people even left to wet themselves during the ordeal.
Laura : "It dropped about five metres without brakes.
"Everyone screamed, they were terrified we were just going to plummet to the ground. It was scary.
"Our legs went numb very, very quickly.
"There was nothing to lean them on, they were just dangling for seven and a half hours."
Fire crews were called to the fair to help the thrill-seekers, between nine and 60-years-old, off, using a cherry-picker to individually pluck them from the stationary ride.
With young children taken off first, Laura and Nicole were some of the last to be taken off the ride at 1.30am.
Nicole said: "It was so cold as well. They only brought us blankets and tin foil after two hours, so by then it didn’t do much to warm us up at all. Our body temperatures dropped to about 34C.
"We were absolutely starving and thirsty too."
She said the sisters were left feeling vulnerable as they watched the Kingston-upon-Hull fair start to close down about 11pm, only getting home about 3am.
Ride owner P. Sedgewick and his team identified the problem earlier today, with Hull Fair writing on Facebook: "It appears that a small diode in a solenoid plug on the tower had blown, causing the ride to shut down as the safety system is designed to do so.
"He would like to personally thank everyone that help with the safe recovery of Power Towers riders. The ride will be fully inspected before it reopens to the public once again. However the ride will remain closed tonight at Hull Fair."
The Hull City Council said the ride would not reopen on Saturday.
They said: "We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this closure, however the safety of visitors to Hull Fair is a top priority for both the council and fairground operators."
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