COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State Fair opens on Wednesday, and according to the fair’s website, it will l have more than 60 rides.

What You Need To Know

  • Keziah Lews underwent more than a dozen surgeries after a ride at the state fair malfunctioned in 2017

  • Lewis' boyfriend was killed from the incident and Gov. DeWine signed Tyler's Law in hopes to improve ride safety

  • The fair says ride safety is their top priority, but officials said earlier this month, one of the rides used last year was made by KMG and was also scheduled for this year

Back in 2017, a ride malfunctioned, killing one person and injuring several others.

Seven years later, Keziah Lewis is still recovering.

“She had to put her entire life on hold while she was in the hospital, she was in a wheelchair, she couldn’t walk, I mean she had a dozen surgeries, more surgeries to come,” said Sean Alto, Lewis’ attorney, a partner at Cooper Elliot.

For years, Alto has been fighting not only to hold the manufacturer of the ride financially responsible, but also to prevent similar accidents from happening in the future.

“Figuring out who was responsible. Which companies, individuals may have liability for what happened at the fair, ultimately who missed what,” Lewis said.

Lewis’ pain goes beyond her injuries.

Her boyfriend Tyler Jarrell was killed in the 2017 incident.

Two years later, Gov. Mike Dewine signed Tyler’s law. Legislation designed to tighten the regulations surrounding ride inspections and in the end keep riders safe.

While Alto said that law is a step in the right direction, he believes other states need to follow suit.

“Common sense legislation across the country that will protect people who go to amusement parks to make sure that the decision about whether to ride an amusement ride isn’t a life or death decision,” Alto said.

As for the manufacturer of the ride, a court in New Jersey has ordered KMG to pay Lewis 20 million dollars.
But with the company based in the Netherlands, Alto said getting them to pay that money won’t be easy.

“They’re not going to do that voluntarily. We’re going to have to force them to do that,” Alto said.

In the meantime, Alto said Lewis’ injuries are still affecting her life. She has to walk with a cane. This prevents her from doing some of the things she loves, like attending concerts.

But through it all, she’s persevering.

“For her to go through all that, and then now seven years later had gone back to school, graduated from college, writing a book, doing all the things that hopefully bring her some joy, most people wouldn’t do that,” Alto said.

The state fair said that safety has always been their top priority, and they said there are several layers of inspections that take place before the ride opens to the public.

Meanwhile, after the incident with the Fire Ball in 2017, the fair said it decided to longer use rides made by its manufacturer, KMG.

But officials said that earlier this month, they learned that one of the rides used last year, and also scheduled for this year, was in fact made by KMG.

They said Gov. DeWine ordered the ride be pulled from this year’s lineup.