Thrill ride malfunctions at popular music festival, leaving riders stuck upside down

Festivalgoers at a major music event found themselves in a heart-stopping situation after a popular amusement ride suddenly shut down, leaving several people stranded upside down in the air.

The incident happened early Thursday morning at Boardmasters, a surf and music festival held annually in Cornwall, England. According to video captured by attendees and a statement from the event’s organizers, the Apollo 13 ride suffered a brief power failure around 1 a.m.

Eyewitness video circulated on TikTok showing riders suspended high above the ground, unable to move for roughly 20 minutes.

One TikTok user who filmed the scene called it “mad,” while another joked about the wind potentially shifting the ride mid-suspension.

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Another user who claimed to be on the ride said “it was just freezing cold.”

The Apollo 13 ride, which travels to festivals and fairs across the UK, is named after NASA’s ill-fated 1970 space mission, when an oxygen tank in the spacecraft’s Service Module exploded. 

The attraction features a rotating arm and seats up to eight people, four on each end, swinging riders as high as 180 feet into the air. During the malfunction, up to four people were reportedly stuck in an inverted position.

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Workers are seen installing the Apollo 13 thrill ride. (Apollo 13 ride Facebook)

Despite the dramatic visuals, organizers insist that safety protocols worked exactly as intended.

“As a safety precaution, the ride automatically halted with people on board,” a Boardmasters spokesperson said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “The ride operator immediately responded and safely assisted all guests from the ride within 20 minutes.” 

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General view of the main stage area at the Boardmasters Festival at Watergate Bay on August 9, 2025, in Newquay, England. (Hugh R Hastings/Getty Images)

“At no point were guests in any danger,” the statement continued. “The ride has since undergone a full safety check and resumed normal operation.”

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The Apollo 13 ride launched in 2024, and its operators regularly post updates and behind-the-scenes maintenance work on its official Facebook page. A post from April outlined the rigorous checks performed before each event, including gear inspections, lighting fixes and greasing of pivot points.

The four-day festival is set to conclude on Sunday, August 10.

Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com