The same thrill ride that catastrophically flew apart and threw riders into the air at the Ohio State Fair on July 26 has been used in fairs across the state of Florida since 1999, according to state records.

  • Ride made 71 appearances at Florida fairs
  • Inspection issues found in more than half of appearances
  • Different model of ride used at Florida State Fair

Inspection records show that the "Fireball" thrill ride involved in the fatal accident was last used in Florida in March 2017. In total, the ride has made 71 appearances at events in Florida since 1999.

During more than half of those appearances, inspections of the ride found issues ranging from loose lap bars to bad shocks. At least seven times the ride was "red-tagged", meaning it was closed down for extensive repairs.

RELATED STORY: Ohio State Fair ride was OK'ed hours before fatal accident

We did learn that the "Fireball" ride used in the Tampa area for the Florida State Fair is a completely different model of the machine, and the machine that malfunctioned in Ohio has never been used at the state fair.

The accident in Ohio killed one and injured seven others, including four teenagers. Ohio Gov. John Kasich shut down all rides at the state fair and ordered them inspected again.

A spokesperson with the Florida Department of Agriculture told us that due to the nature of the Ohio State Fair accident, use of any and all models of the "Fireball" will not be able to operate in the state of Florida until the manufacturer conducts a full investigation.

That manufacturer, Netherlands-based KMG, told operators of the same attraction at fairs and festivals around the world to stop using it until more is learned about what caused the malfunction.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.