safety
State shuts down ride after 9 hurt, 4 hospitalized following ‘malfunction’ at Tennessee’s largest fair
Summary by The Nashville Editorial Desk Chasity Maynard, Sydney Witte , as published by WSMV 4 News (NBC affiliate)
· August 20, 2026
· 1 min read
Photo: WSMV 4 News (NBC affiliate) · view original
Story provenance No corrections
Summary created by The Nashville Editorial Desk — automated, rule-governed Byline on source page Chasity Maynard, Sydney Witte, as published by WSMV 4 News (NBC affiliate) Original story Read at the source Source published Aug 20, 2026 Indexed here Aug 20, 2026 AI assistance Automated summary drawn from the source’s own published text Prepublication human review No — editorial rules, flagged-item review, and published samples
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Key points This incident is not the first reported issue with a Reithoffer Shows ride at the fair, as a man reported a 'near death experience' in 2022. The ride's owner, Reithoffer Shows, reported the malfunction and a state inspector is evaluating the ride.
A ride malfunction at the Wilson County–Tennessee State Fair resulted in nine people being hurt. Four of those injured were hospitalized. The incident involved the Wave Swinger ride hitting a fence. The ride's owner, Reithoffer Shows, reported the malfunction and a state inspector is evaluating the ride.
The fair, which opened on August 13, is scheduled to continue through Saturday. This incident is not the first reported issue with a Reithoffer Shows ride at the fair, as a man reported a 'near death experience' in 2022.
Further details about the incident and the fair are available from the source.
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WSMV 4 News (NBC affiliate) reported and published this story. The Nashville selected it, summarised the key facts above, and links to the original. We did not report this story and we added no reporting of our own to it.
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Category: safety Published: August 20, 2026 Source: WSMV 4 News (NBC affiliate) Reading time: 1 min
Frequently asked about this story
What is this story about? A ride malfunction at the Wilson County–Tennessee State Fair resulted in nine people being hurt. Four of those injured were hospitalized. The incident involved the Wave Swinger ride hitting a fence…
When was this published? This article was first published on August 20, 2026 by WSMV 4 News (NBC affiliate) and curated for The Nashville readers.
Who reported this story? This story was reported by Chasity Maynard, Sydney Witte at WSMV 4 News (NBC affiliate). To learn more about how The Nashville selects and reviews stories, see our editorial standards .
Where can I find related coverage? See more safety coverage from The Nashville, or browse our daily briefing and topic hubs .
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