The viral TikTok has garnered more than 13.8 million views and 1.6 million likes since Feb. 18. Credit: Shutterstock/ Annette Shaff

A video of what appears to show someone tightening a nut onto a bolt holding up a carnival ride at the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo has gone viral on TikTok, sparking an online discussion about the safety of pop-up carnival equipment.

In the video, which has garnered more than 13.8 million views and 1.6 million likes since being posted on Feb. 18, rodeo-goer Troy Poblano pans out to a view of the fairgrounds before zooming in on what appears to be a loose nut on the Ferris wheel.

@triizzy23__ #carnivalrides #sanantonio #rodeo ♬ original sound – Troy Poblano

“Let me just tighten that up there,” Poblano says as he hand-tightens the nut onto a thick piece of threaded metal.

Many comments shared on the video clip raised concerns about the safety of the carnival rides at the rodeo, which wrapped up last week. Some joked that the rides are death traps.

“I never understand how people go to the fair and go on rides that came out of a suitcase,” TikTok user @mari_idgaf_ quipped.

“The fear of death is half the fun of a carnival ride,” @sockeysah added.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, 1,299 people were injured from amusement park rides in 2019.

Despite the unsettling image in the video, TikTok user @devilragon666x and others explained that the bolt is actually part of a turnbuckle. Even if the bolt was completely unscrewed, the seven inches of additional thread meant it wouldn’t go anywhere, the user argued.

Whether or not the loose nut posed an actual safety hazard, the official TikTok account of the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo thanked Poblano for his service.

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This article appears in Feb 22 – Mar 7, 2023.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...