Fourteen children have been injured after an inflatable slide they were playing on collapsed during an end of the school year event, reports say.
One child sustained a broken leg as a result of the incident on Tuesday in Wyandanch, New York. The town is a hamlet of Long Island.
The event had been organised by the Wyandanch School District as an end of year celebration, ABC7 reported, which ended with Suffolk County Fire & Rescue ambulances arriving on scene.
Some children were stretchered away and most injuries were minor, officials told the news station.
“Eleven people were treated here by a field physician from Suffolk County Fire and Rescue,” said Paul Miller, a fire spokesperson.
“They were released to parents or guardians from the school here at the scene. And then we had seven people that were transported by Wyandanch-Wheatley Heights Ambulance and also West Babylon fire department”.
A witness told CBS New York she saw the inflatable slide – which also included a rock climbing wall – fly into the air both landing on its side. She said children were now “terrified”.
“He flew like 15 feet up in the air and landed right by the gate there,” said Stacey Brown. “I’m just praying they are all OK, especially that young man that flew up ... scared, they’re all terrified.”
The children involved in the accident were from Martin Luther King and Hardiman Elementary schools, and the school district is reportedly investigating what happened.
“We recognise this is a very scary event witnessed by our young scholars, staff, and families, and we are deeply concerned about how this could have happened,” said superintendent Dr Gina Talbert to local news outlets.
“We will provide more information as available. At this time, our priority is the health and well-being of the students who may have been injured and those students who attended the event.”
It remains unclear which company operated the inflatable.
