Vigil planned for SC train ride crash victim

[March 22, 2011]  SPARTANBURG, S.C. (AP) -- A candlelight vigil is being held to remember the 6-year-old boy killed in a miniature train crash in northwestern South Carolina.

Spartanburg Parks Commission spokeswoman Nisha (NEE'-sha) Patel says a vigil is planned for Tuesday night at Cleveland Park in Spartanburg.

Six-year-old Benji Easler died Saturday when the train went off its rails. His parents, siblings and more than 20 others were injured.

State officials said Monday the inspector who approved the ride for operation was fired after admitting he falsified his report.

Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation chief Catherine Templeton said the inspector couldn't have tested the ride because a battery in the train was dead, making it inoperable.

Patel says officials opened the nearly 60-year-old train on March 19, a week ahead of schedule.

[Associated Press]

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