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Girl's actions caused her to fall from Six Flags ride, police say

QUEENSBURY, N.Y. -- Authorities say a 14-year-old girl's actions caused her to fall from a New York amusement park ride and land in the arms of bystanders.

Warren County sheriff's Lt. Steven Stockdale tells The Post-Star of Glens Falls that "human error" on the part of the teen caused her to slip under a metal restraining bar on the Sky Ride gondola while riding with her brother Saturday at Six Flags Great Escape.

"It could have been a lot worse than it was," Stockdale said, adding that the ride was found to be functioning properly.

Girl survives fall from Six Flags ride 02:24

The girl dangled briefly while her brother held her. The ride was stopped, and she dropped about 25 feet into a crowd poised to catch her. The girl was taken to an Albany hospital for unspecified injuries.

Park officials say the ride remains closed Monday, pending an internal review.

Two safety consultants contacted by "CBS This Morning" said these types of gondola rides have good safety records. They also said when something does go wrong, it's usually because of something the rider did.

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