Video of fair ride accident is from China, not Atlanta | Fact check

A Sept. 5 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows a video of a swing ride at a fair. As the swings come down, each rider smacks into the back of a truck parked too close to the ride.
“Do NOT come to the atlanta (sic) county fair,” reads text on screen.
The video was also shared on other platforms, including YouTube.
More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page
The CEO of the Atlanta Fair said the incident did not happen there. The video was first posted a year ago and shows an incident that occurred in a province of China.
The Atlanta Fair ran from March 1 to April 7 and will be back from Oct. 4 until Nov. 3. But Ray Guthrie, the fair’s president and CEO, told USA TODAY the video doesn’t show one of their rides.
“We don’t even own one of those rides,” Guthrie said.
All evidence points to the video originating in China.
The video has circulated online for well over a year, and the earlier versions identify that as the location. The American branch of China Global Television Network, a state-controlled media group, posted the same video on Jan. 24, 2023, and stated that it was filmed in Zhoukou, in China’s Henan province. The incident was caused by “misoperation by an employee,” the media group reported.
Other versions of this video show people, clothing and background music consistent with that location as well.
Fact check: Video shows gymnasts performing in Israel, not Paris Olympics
USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or e-newspaper here.
USA TODAY is a verified signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network, which requires a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisanship, fairness and transparency. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Meta.