Carnival operator has fixed 3 of 5 shut-down rides

Carnival operator has fixed 3 of 5 shut-down rides.

TIPTON, Iowa - A carnival operator who was not allowed to operate several rides after they failed a state inspection in Clinton last week has fixed three of the rides, but two others still are not operating this week at the Cedar County Fair in Tipton. After an inspection at the Cedar County Fairgrounds on Thursday, a state inspector approved three of the rides that were shut down during the Clinton Jaycees carnival, which was held last week in conjunction with Clinton Riverboat Days, said Kerry Koonce, a spokeswoman for Iowa Workforce Development, which is responsible for inspecting carnival rides. Two other rides did not pass inspection, but River City Amusements, based in Cleveland, Texas, brought in another ride that was not in Clinton last week to give the carnival seven operable rides, Koonce said. Floyd Fodness, manager of the carnival, said he believed the rides closed in Clinton last week were the result of an inexperienced inspector and he was unable to get the repairs made late last week because he could not get the personnel required by the state on a holiday weekend. Fodness said he plans to have all the rides operable before his carnival moves to Solon, Iowa, next week. Dave Mohr, vice president of the Cedar County Fair Board, said the fair board had used Fodness' company for several years without any problems, and that the carnival and the rest of the fair were going well Friday morning. "They've done a fair amount of work on those (rides