A child was taken to hospital with a broken front tooth after an incident on a York funfair ride.

Jessica Widgery rushed her eight-year-old daughter Abby to York District Hospital's accident and emergency department after she struck a ride's safety bar at Thunder Theme Park on Knavesmire last Friday evening.

Abby and her mother were on a ride called "Jumpin Frogs" which raises it's arms and drops them, when Abby crashed her head against the one of the metal safety bar and broke one of her front teeth clean in half.

According to Jessica the man operating the ride shouted through a tannoy for the riders to raise their arms as it dropped. She said the ride was stopped but no one came to their assistance. Abby was crying and she ushered her away from the ride and the Knavesmire and took her to casualty.

Jessica said: "We had our seatbelts on and two metal bars were securing us in. The lower bar had a layer of padding around it, but the top one didn't. She didn't stand a chance when she hit it.

"At first I thought she would be OK, but when she spat her tooth out I knew something was very wrong."

Abby went to the emergency dentist and has to return to her own dentist for a crown to her tooth.

Jessica said: "I'm absolutely devastated for Abby. This incident is going to cause her a lifetime of problems and dental work.

"It has really knocked her confidence and she doesn't even want to go to school now because of how her teeth look. She can't talk properly at the moment."

Jessica said she would be contacting her solicitor, adding: "Parents need to be made aware of what can happen at these kind of fairgrounds. All Abby was offered was some free tickets for other rides. That really was the last thing on her mind she was so upset."

The incident follows the story in Saturday's Evening Press of teenager Shelly Goldsmith, who was battered and bruised on the fair's Spritzer ride on Thursday.

And Angela Allis of Sheringham Drive, Woodthorpe, said she had to take her 14-year-old daughter Rebecca to hospital suffering pain in her shoulders and arms after going on the Spritzer last Tuesday

Rebecca said she was so badly thrown about that she ended up on her friend's seat and had to be pushed back into her own.

Mrs Allis said: "Rebecca was in tears when she got home and paracetamol would not settle the pain in her arms and shoulders.

"She had been literally flung across into the next seat by the ride."

Rebecca, a pupil at Oakland School, had an x-ray which showed no serious damage, though she expects to have some physiotherapy sessions.

Mrs Allis added: "I've kept Rebecca off school since the incident because she can't even write properly at the moment.

"She's in so much discomfort that she can't even reach up to wash her own hair."

Theme park owner Steve Graham said: "I am sad that three people out of the thousands of people who have come along and had a good time have complained.

"We pride ourselves on our safety at the park and we wish to send our apologies to those people who have not enjoyed the rides.

"At the end of the day a child could have knocked her tooth out at a swing park, and it is very unfortunate that it has happened here.

"More people are injured coming to the fair than are at the fair. Some of our rides are boisterous and a sign is on the Spritzer ride telling people that."

Updated: 08:59 Monday, June 11, 2001