Uncle Robert Pohlman has established a gofundme account to raise funds for medical treatment of his nephew Huntley, who was thrown from the Moby Dick carnival ride at Taste of Antioch on Sunday, July 16, 2023.
The gofundme fundraiser is asking people for help to raise funds for medical treatment and future surgical treatment that is expected.
Hi, my name is Robert. I’m his uncle. On July 16th at around 3pm my nephew was flung from a carnival ride approximately 10-20 feet in the air. He was flown through flight for life twice to two separate hospitals due to the care needed. My sister and his father will be out of work for a time that will make paying for the unknown amount of surgery my nephew will need, almost impossible. Anything helps, funds will be used to pay medical fees and if there’s any left over, that will be saved for him when he recovers.
Thank you for your time, compassion and donation.
He’s a strong kid. He once broke his arm and pushed the bone back in, on his own because “it didn’t hurt”. Truly remarkable kid.
NOTE: gofundme was reporting an “Unknown Error” Monday afternoon for several gofundme accounts checked by CARDINAL NEWS. The website downdetector.com is also reporting a spike in outages for gofundme beginning about 4:00 p.m. CT.
A witness who was on the Moby Dick carvnival ride at the same time as the boy said his own harness was coming loose, and that he also witnessed the other rider thrown from the Moby Dick carnival ride. YouTube Tips ⓘ
Police and firefighter/paramedics from Antioch responded about 2:40 p.m. Sunday, July 16, 2023 to a report that a child was injured when he was thrown from a carnival ride (by equipment malfunction or human operator error) near the intersection of Main Street and Orchard Street in Antioch.
Firefighters and paramedics discovered an injured child at the scene after he had been ejected approximately 10 to 12 feet from the Moby Dick carnival ride.
A medical helicopter landing zone was set up near the carnival, and the child was transported by helicopter to Level 1 Trauma Center, Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge.
A 10-year-old child was thrown from a carnival ride on Sunday in Antioch, according to police, and the accident was witnessed by Elliott Johnson of Round Lake Heights (Bronagh Tumulty/WGN News). YouTube Tips ⓘ
Witness Elliott Johnson of Round Lake Heights said that during possibly the third time around on the ride, the child “almost did like a dive with his arms down and his legs straight” outside the gate near the ride. Johnson explained that during the ride his own harness was moving up, and he would slam down the harness to close it so he wouldn’t fall out.
There are previous reports of injuries on ridesdatabase.org that indicate problems with the harness bar striking people during exit or entry to the ride.
The Moby Dick carnival ride moves in a back-and-forth motion and then moves quickly in a full elliptical motion while people are seated side-by-side on a long bench structure. According to Wisdom Industries or Wisdom Rides of America, the ride is known as a family thrill ride, and measures 63 feet wide. The ride has other configurations and is also named Genesis.
Moby Dick ride at the Puerto Rican festival in Franklin Park Boston. YouTube Tips ⓘ
Antioch Chamber of Commerce Taste of Antioch was held Thursday, July 13 through Sunday, July 16, 2023, but the rides were closed down early because of the carnival ride accident.
Village officials met, and Antioch Mayor Scott Gartner used his executive authority to order the rides shut down at the carnival. The Department of Labor is taking the lead of the investigation with the Antioch Police Department and Antioch Fire Department.
Taste of Antioch is a four-day festival with food, street sales, entertainment, local activities, and a carnival. Except for the carnival rides, the rest of the features of the Taste of Antioch remained open.
Child injured after falling off of carnival ride at Taste of Antioch (ABC 7 Chicago). YouTube Tips ⓘ
The information in this article is an early report published before any summary information was confirmed or released by police or fire authorities.
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