A second child was swept into the air while playing inside a zorb ball at the same time a boy was injured in a freak accident, police have confirmed.
The nine-year-old boy remained in hospital yesterday evening after suffering 'multiple serious injuries' when an inflatable ball was flung from a paddling pool into the air by an unexpected gust of wind at Southport Food and Drink Festival in Merseyside.
One eyewitness said they saw the ball move over trees and "thought it was a balloon at first" before they "realised it was one of the inflatables with a child inside".
The ball then landed on the grass in front of horrified onlookers, with the boy later admitted to hospital in an air ambulance. Videos from the scene showed the park packed with festival attendees as the emergency response unfolded.
Describing what they saw, another visitor to the festival said: "There was a gust of wind, the inflatable zorb took off from the water pool with the boy inside.
"The zorb then landed on a wheelie bin, the zorb popped on impact, leaving the boy on the ground."
Another said it "wasn’t even that windy" on the day so it "must’ve been a freak gust of wind".
Merseyside Police have since confirmed that a child inside another of the inflatable balls was also taken into the air briefly during the incident, but was thankfully left unharmed.
A statement from a force spokesperson said: "At around 2pm on Sunday 4 June, it was reported that a nine-year-old boy had sustained significant injuries at an outdoor festival in Victoria Park, on Rotten Row.
"The boy was inside an inflatable zorb ball on a lake, which was unexpectedly raised into the air before it landed on the grass.
"A second zorb ball containing another child was also raised at the same time, but thankfully this child was unharmed.
"The nine-year-old was taken to hospital by air ambulance for treatment to his injuries. He remains in hospital at this time."
Police are now appealing for anyone who may have captured images or videos of the incident to get in touch to help us establish the circumstances of what happened.
Anyone with images or videos can send them using the incident web page, while those with information can DM @MerPolCC on Twitter or contact @CrimestoppersUK on 0800 555 111 quoting reference 596.
