Here’s how Tennessee decides whether the Wave Swinger can reopen after the Wilson County–Tennessee State Fair incident.
Wilson County, TN – A state operating permit can tell the public that a fair ride met Tennessee’s requirements when it was cleared to operate.
It cannot tell the public what caused an incident a week later.
That distinction is now at the center of the Wave Swinger incident at the Wilson County–Tennessee State Fair.
Nine guests were evaluated after an incident on the ride Wednesday, Aug. 19. Five were released after treatment at the fairgrounds and four were transported to a hospital for further testing, according to Wilson County Emergency Management Agency as reported by NewsChannel 5. A follow-up report Friday said all four people taken to the hospital had been released.
Reithoffer Shows, which operates the ride, said the Wave Swinger stopped and that, as it came down, some guests came into contact with the surrounding fence.
That is the operator’s account of what happened. The cause has not been publicly established.
The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development issued a cease-and-desist order after the incident. The state says the ride cannot operate again until required inspection material is received and reviewed and the department determines that the ride meets the requirements to return to service.
What makes the story more complicated is what happened before the incident.
The Wave Swinger had been inspected Aug. 12, one day before the fair opened. The state says the inspection was performed by a qualified third-party inspector and that the ride passed. Reithoffer Shows also had an active annual Tennessee operating permit covering 57 amusement devices.
Before the Aug. 12 inspection, however, a new computer system and motor had been installed on the Wave Swinger. The state says the manufacturer now must assess the ride and determine whether that equipment affected its functionality.
That does not establish that the new equipment caused the incident.
It establishes something narrower — and important: The manufacturer and regulators still have a technical question to resolve before the ride can return to service.
The incident also exposes a part of Tennessee’s amusement-ride system that many fairgoers may not realize exists.
Under Tennessee’s system, amusement-device companies select qualified third-party inspectors to perform required inspections. Those inspectors must use approved industry standards. The state’s Amusement Device Unit reviews required documentation, issues operating permits and oversees compliance.
In other words, the state regulates the system, but qualified private inspectors perform the required technical inspections.
To receive a Tennessee operating permit, an amusement-device company must submit required application information, proof of at least $1 million in liability insurance per occurrence and a qualifying inspection report, among other requirements. Tennessee says inspection reports must show that the device passed or met the applicable approved industry standards.
The process becomes more restrictive after a serious incident.
State guidance says an operator must stop operating the device, report qualifying incidents to the state, arrange an inspection by a certified third-party inspector and wait for state authorization before returning the device to service.
That distinction became especially relevant Thursday after Reithoffer Shows said a “state inspector” was examining the Wave Swinger and had found no abnormality at that point.
The Department of Labor and Workforce Development subsequently clarified that its Amusement Device Unit does not conduct accident investigations and that inspections and assessments are performed by qualified third-party inspectors. The state’s role is to oversee the regulatory process, review the documentation and determine whether operational requirements have been satisfied.
None of that, by itself, proves Tennessee’s system worked or failed.
An inspection is evidence that a device met the applicable standards at the time it was inspected. It is not a guarantee that a component cannot later fail, that conditions cannot change or that a problem will never emerge.
At the same time, a valid permit should not end the public’s questions after an incident. It gives regulators and the operator a documented starting point for determining what changed and why.
That is the accountability test now facing the Wave Swinger.
The public still does not have a final explanation for what caused riders to come into contact with the fence. The manufacturer’s assessment of the recently installed computer system and motor remains important. So does the post-incident inspection documentation the state says it must review before the ride can reopen.
The Wilson County–Tennessee State Fair runs through Saturday, Aug. 22. The state said its Amusement Device Unit has maintained an on-site presence because it is Tennessee’s largest fair.
Whether the Wave Swinger operates again before the fair closes is less important than the standard used to make that decision.
The meaningful question is not simply whether the ride had a permit before Wednesday.
It did.
The question now is what the evidence shows after the incident — and whether the regulatory process can demonstrate that any identified problem has been addressed before another rider takes a seat.
I am a retired detective and criminal justice / government educator based in Tennessee. I founded The Redemption Project, as a place to focus on civics, rebuild non-partisan trust, and provide educational and emotional grace while learning about the news. I also have a column in Knox TN Today. My reporting and commentary have also appeared in other outlets including; Governing, The Arizona Capitol Times, South Florida Sun Sentinel, Police1, among other state and regional outlets.
