A MAN had a lucky escape yesterday evening after a near fatal accident on a fairground ride on the Isle of Wight, on a similar ride which left two teens with broken bones last week.

Pete Ruth, 30, was just inches away from certain death while he enjoyed the Dance Crazy ride at John Matthews travelling fun fair during its visit to Sandown on the East coast of the Island. Half way through the leaping-frog style ride, thrill seekers witnessed a metal bar holding three chairs together snap in half before the chairs bottomed out on the steel floor. As hundreds of people watched on, the now single chair was flung to the left 90 degrees, leaving Pete hanging on for his life.

Bystanders watched helplessly as the ride continued for another two rotations as Pete’s head remained only inches away from being impaled on the metal railings. After nearly colliding into a speaker and smashing into a ride attendant, fairground workers and Police officers rushed to scene to lift Pete to safety while families looked on in horror.

Riders were left hanging in the air as concerns grew for the lucky rider, who was left shaken but unharmed following his ordeal.

The effected chairs were kept together by a ratchet strap as the ride, which had a young child collecting money, was closed down. Despite the incident, the fairground carried on as normal, although many residents and holiday makers alike left out of fear.