The death of a six-year-old who was flung from a ride at a Victorian beachside carnival in 2017 has led to amusement industry reforms, WorkSafe says.

New regulations introduce and update rules on design, record-keeping and “item of plant registration”, under which official approval must be gained before high-risk equipment is used.

The workplace health and safety regulator’s reforms follow the death of Eugene Mahauariki in Rye. The boy was not properly restrained on a cha-cha ride and slipped under a safety bar. A coronial inquest found restraints on the 1961 ride did not comply with Australian standards. An earlier inspection wrongly passed the ride as safe.

WorkSafe chief health and safety officer Sam Jenkin says the regulations are a major step forward for the carnival industry.

“For the first time, WorkSafe will have a complete picture of Victoria’s amusements industry and direct contact details for every operator, meaning we can quickly communicate important safety information to the right people when needed,” he said.

“The changes also strengthen our compliance and enforcement work, giving families confidence that every ride operating in Victoria is subject to rigorous oversight and is continuously meeting safety requirements.”

Under changes to the Occupational Health and Safety Amendment (Amusement Structure) Regulations 2026, all amusement rides must be design-registered or have a certificate of interstate design recognition before they can operate in Victoria.

This replaces previous regulations under which design registration in Victoria was mandatory only for rides designed on or after July 1 1995.

Rides registered interstate will not automatically to be fit to operate in Victoria and recognition of interstate designs will occur through a free application process.

Registrations and recognition of design registrations can be made only by people living in Australia.

Each ride must have an inspection and safety assessment completed by someone with relevant engineering qualifications and knowledge of applicable technical standards.

Operating manuals, maintenance manuals and logbooks need to be available for inspection.

“We have also invested in upskilling our workforce, with existing inspectors undertaking refresher training on the new requirements and more inspectors being trained in amusement structures,” Mr Jenkin said.

He says inspectors attended more than 430 events across Victoria to monitor amusement ride safety last fiscal year.