Amusement park ride hospitalizes girl

A 13-year-old girl hit her head while on a spinning ride at an amusement park, putting her in intensive care.

Natashia West was injured Thursday on the Magic Teacup ride at Boomers, just south of Fort Lauderdale. She remained sedated Monday with head injuries.

"All I want is for her to be the same little girl she was," said Donnie Jackson, her father.

The ride carries passengers inside round cups. At the center of each cup is a wheel riders can turn to control how fast it spins. It was not clear how Natashia hit her head or what part of the ride she hit it on.

State officials inspected the ride Friday and found no mechanical problems, agency spokesman Terence McElroy said.

The department has not concluded its investigation but expects to release a report this week. The ride was cleared by the department to open but remained closed Monday, McElroy said. A routine inspection by the department in April also found the ride to have no mechanical problems.

The accident was the second of at least three serious ones in eight days at U.S. amusement parks.

A 21-year-old employee was killed Friday when she was thrown from a ride at Rye Playland in Rye, N.Y., about 25 miles north of midtown Manhattan. A park spokesman said workers weren't following a rule _ put in place after a 7-year-old girl died in 2004 _ requiring two attendants on the spinning, spider-armed ride.

In Louisville, Ky., investigators with the state Department of Agriculture said Monday they have taken possession of a cable they believe broke and severed 13-year-old Kaitlyn Lasitter's feet June 21 at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom. The girl's family said last week that she was hospitalized in stable condition, but they did not say whether her feet had been reattached.