GREENEVILLE, Tenn. (WCTV Eyewitness News) – Police are citing a mechanical failure in the accident that dumped three children from a Ferris wheel at Tennessee’s Greene County Fair.

Greeneville Police Capt. Tim Davis said at a news conference late Tuesday that the failure caused the basket to overturn and dump the girls some 30 to 45 feet to the ground.

The ride is owned and operated by Valdosta company Family Attractions Amusement Company, according to an accident report.

The report states that one of the ride’s gondola’s was tipped approximately 90 degrees.

According to media reports, Davis said police had not confirmed reports that the basket the girls were riding in was rocking before the accident.

The fall left a 6-year-old girl with a traumatic brain injury and sharpened the focus on how carnival rides are regulated.

After a 2014 audit found shortcomings in Tennessee’s regulatory program for rides at fairs and amusement parks, state officials decided to get out of the inspection business altogether.

The state now relies on private inspectors hired by operators and other states’ regulators to determine whether roller coasters, zip lines and Ferris wheels are safe.

WCTV has reached out to Family Attractions Amusement Company for comment multiple times but none of the calls have been returned.