A worker for Butler Amusements was injured on Friday morning, Feb. 17, before the Cloverdale Citrus Fair threw open its gates for 2023. The worker was helping set up the Ferris wheel, and witnesses reported on social media that he tumbled from one of the gondolas while working on its gate.
Calling it a “minor incident with an employee,” assistant manager Jessie Boge of Butler Amusements said the worker was taken to the hospital by other employees. “He was released, and he’s doing fine. That’s about it,” said Boge.
The ride is called the Century Wheel by Butler, a 70-foot high ride that can hold up to 90 passengers at one time.
After a brief delay, the ride was opened on Friday afternoon and remained in operation throughout the fair, which ended Feb. 20.
Some witnesses on Facebook stated that the worker, who was unidentified, broke a collarbone, but Boge would not confirm that or any other details, though he did say the man who fell was a regular Butler worker and not a local resident.
Butler Amusements provides rides and games for mixed ages, “eats and treats” and other midway concessions. Though based in California, it contracts with county fairs and similar events throughout the West, using several units of rides and staff. The same weekend it was in Cloverdale, they ran a simultaneous fair in Riverside.
The weekend of Feb. 23-26, they return to Sonoma County for the Petaluma Carnival.
Boge said there were no other incidents at the fair. “Just good times,” he said. “And the weather has been on our side this time, which is nice.”
Good weather led to a possible record turnout for the Cloverdale Citrus Fair, according to chief executive officer Tom Keaney. “Attendance was up 5% the first day from 2020—which was our record year,” he said. In that year, the Citrus Fair attracted some 16,800 guests over its four-day run.
Notably, said Keaney, it was the only county fair celebrated in the state in 2020. The COVID emergency health orders were declared by Gov. Gavin Newsom the first week in March; the 2020 Citrus Fair was held Feb. 17-20.
