VIRGINIA BEACH – The Mount Trashmore Summer Carnival will return Friday for a nearly three-week run with last year’s added security measures in place.
The event will have a Ferris wheel in addition to rides with names like “Monkey Maze,” “Orient Express,” “Happy Swing” and “Starship 4000,” according to the city. Admission is free, but rides require a number of $1 tickets or a wristband that can cost $12 to $20, depending on the day. Most rides require between two and six tickets.
Organizers kept the safety precautions they enacted immediately after a bout of gunshots and violence at last year’s event.
The carnival will be enclosed by a fence, illuminated by more light towers, patrolled by an increased number of staff and close nightly an hour earlier than it did before last year’s incident, said Julie Braley, a Parks & Recreation spokeswoman.
Those measures “worked well for the rest of the run last year so we’re keeping them in place,” Braley said.
Police responded to an incident on the carnival’s opening weekend last year in which no injuries were reported but two were arrested, according to media reports. The incident caused the city to briefly close the event and bump up security.
The carnival opens at 6 p.m. on weekdays and 2 p.m. on weekends, and closes each night at 10 p.m. It will run until June 21.
Wristbands for unlimited rides can be purchased for $18 on Mondays and Wednesdays; $12 on Tuesdays; and $20 on weekends. On Thursdays, all rides are $1.
The carnival operator is the same company as the past 12 years — Deggeller Attraction. It is the same company that operates rides for the Pungo Strawberry Festival.
For more information on the carnival, including height requirements for the rides, visit VBgov.com/carnival.
