Dart Hits Woman’s Eye at State Fair

DALLAS - A North Texas woman wants people to know there are unseen dangers at the State Fair of Texas. She lost sight in her left eye after a Midway mishap.

Terrye Tebbetts said she and her 11-year-old daughter recently spent the day at the fair. They decided to try their luck at bursting a balloon with a dart and won.

“We were both leaning in and he was pointing out whatever prize I could have and I was looking,” Tebbetts said.

She said as her daughter selected a prize she stepped back and looked down the Midway. When she glanced back she saw something coming towards her.

“I just remembered something coming straight at me. I had no idea and then all of a sudden I realized it’s in my eye,” Tebbetts said.

Instinctively Tebbetts grabbed the dart in her eye and pulled it out. A man who was a paramedic and who saw what happened rushed over to help.

“That was the most devastating point because when he asked me to open it, it was total black. I couldn’t see anything,” she said

Tebbetts now wants the fair to shut down the game. She wants parents to understand that anyone passing by can be hit by one of the darts.

“Even if you’re not playing the game, you’re at risk,” she said. “This dart going through someone’s eyeball is 100 percent preventable – eliminate the game.”

Fair spokeswoman Sue Gooding said she can’t say much because of possible litigation. But the game remains open, she said.

“We understand that it is a freak accident, one that we've not been able in our research to find that was duplicated in probably the last 20 years,” she said.

“We have had all of the games and rides reviewed since this incident and our inspectors have come back and said they do believe that it’s safe and operational for our fair goers. It has not been closed down.”