People at the New Year's event helped bring the rolling bouncy castle to a halt. Photo / Vanessa Potgieter
People at the New Year's event helped bring the rolling bouncy castle to a halt. Photo / Vanessa Potgieter
A bouncy castle that became “airborne” at a Tauranga park and injured five people has been attributed to “insufficient anchoring of the inflatable” and the windspeed being “well-above” the operator’s limits, a WorkSafe investigation has found.
The incident happened at Fergusson Park in Matua about 7.30pm last December 31.
Revellers at the time spoke of witnessing the “terrifying” moment the inflatable was picked up by the wind and tumbled across the park during festivities and described people being “squashed”.
Tauranga City Council reported at the time that two of the five people injured were taken to hospital, and Hato Hone St John said one was in a serious condition when transported.
People at the New Year's event helped bring the rolling bouncy castle to a halt. Photo / Vanessa Potgieter
In a statement today, WorkSafe New Zealand area investigation manager Danielle Henry said its investigation found the average windspeed at the time of the incident was ”well above the limits set by the manufacturer and the operator itself, Rockup (North) Limited”.
“Staff relied primarily on observation of weather conditions instead of using technical tools available to gauge the conditions, and there was insufficient anchoring of the inflatable.”
In February, WorkSafe issued Rockup (North) Limited with a prohibition notice against the use of the inflatable involved, Henry said.
An improvement notice was also issued requiring effective ground anchoring and effective wind monitoring during operation, she said.
Both notices were lifted by WorkSafe in April after the company made improvements. No charges would be filed, Henry said.
Henry said WorkSafe was moving to strengthen its safety guidance following its investigation.
WorkSafe would update its existing guidance to include several recommendations, including a qualified expert conducting an annual inspection to ensure inflatables complied with the relevant standards and a trained and experienced person being present at all times to oversee operations and monitor conditions.
Other recommendations included “site-specific testing of anchor stakes” being done before operation to ensure that the applicable minimum ground holding force was met and an anemometer was used to confirm wind speed was being accurately measured before and during the operation of inflatable devices.
“WorkSafe expects that operators conduct a thorough hazard identification and risk assessment prior to operation, and that those hiring bouncy castles for events assure themselves that their operator meets or exceeds the relevant standards.”
Henry said WorkSafe supported the leadership of the Hire Industry Association, which was running a summer campaign to promote bouncy castle safety among owners and operators.
Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.
