BAYTOWN -- A little more than a week ago, a young boy was seriously injured at one of those traveling carnivals -- the amusement park rides that pop up from time to time in the parking lot of your local mall.

But who is inspecting those rides to keep you safe? You might be surprised who is, and who isn’t.

On a Sunday afternoon, in the parking lot of the San Jacinto Mall in Baytown, the laughter and screams were normal.

But people were still pointing to where 24 hours earlier, the screams were different.

A simple ride called the Fire Brigade carries young children in a slow circle. They stand in a basket that raises them 10 feet into the air.

But a 4-year-old boy opened the door on his own and stepped out. The basket came down, knocked him unconscious and pinned him to the ground.

After two nights in the hospital, the boy survived. The ride was shut down.

State records to 2007 show more than 3,600 injuries at Texas carnivals and amusement parks since 1986.

Three years ago in Austin, a 9-year-old girl was thrown from a fast spinning carnival ride and killed.

But whether it’s a devastating loss, or a Baytown accident, Texas requires these rides only be inspected once a year.

It works like this: Rides in Texas are not inspected by any state agency.

They are inspected by men like this. His name is Daniel Dudley: an amusement park safety consultant who works for an insurance company.

Texas requires amusement ride companies carry a minimum of $1 million liability insurance for each accident.

To get that insurance, they have to pass an inspection that meets that insurance company’s standards.

Records obtained by 11 News show Dudley inspected and approved the Fire Brigade ride two weeks before the Baytown accident.

And records on file with the Texas Department of Insurance show the insurance and inspection paperwork was in order.

“They passed inspection to my knowledge from the Texas Department of Insurance,” Eric Freed said.

By Texas standards, the ride was considered safe.

Several states have no regulations and do not require that the rides be inspected for safety: Alabama, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Utah and Vermont.

Texas is one of six states that rely on insurance companies or other third parties for inspections.

Industry supporters call it a good system. They argue that during carnivals, they inspect the rides daily on their own.

SJ Entertainment, the company operating that Baytown carnival, declined to comment on this story.

But parents with their children in tow at the carnival were talking.

“You figure they put these things up in a matter of days that go spinning a hundred miles an hour,” parent Paul Owens said. “I’m exaggerating a bit, but you know what I mean.”

And now you know what they mean when told these rides pass inspection once every year.