Girl, four, accidentally hangs herself on bouncy castle while staff were distracted by their phones
Girl, four, accidentally hangs herself from bouncy castle while staff distracted by their phones: body only found after mother checks why her daughter stopped laughing
- The girl was found entangled in the ropes of the structure by employees of the bouncy castle
- Three staff members were distracted by their phones, police discovered
a A four-year-old girl has died of suffocation while playing in a bouncy castle when three staff members were distracted by their smartphones.
The tragedy took place last weekend at an amusement park in the southern Ukraine town of Mykolaiv.
The girl, named Valeria, was found tangled in the ropes by bouncy castle assistants after her mother, Anna, asked them to check on her because she hadn’t heard her daughter’s laughter in a while.
‘Anna first [the girl’s mother] thought Valeria had lost consciousness while playing in the heat and tried to wake her up,” says Natalia Kuchynska, a close friend of the family.
According to Ms. Kuchynska, a male witness called an ambulance while other park visitors splashed water on the girl and subjected her to mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compressions.
The six-year-old girl, named Valeria, was found entangled in the structure’s ropes by bouncy castle assistants
Bouncy castle rescuers said they were glued to their phones while Valeria, 4, suffocated
“There were no medical assistants on site to provide first aid. Someone brought dentists from a nearby clinic,’ said Ms. Kuchynska.
“They examined the child, tried to wake her up with ammonia and shone light in her eyes. When the ambulance arrived, paramedics declared Valeria dead.’
Anna and Valeria were about to go home when the girl asked her mother to play for three more minutes. The woman agreed and waited for her daughter in the parents’ zone in an area where she couldn’t see the child, reports say.
Three staff members who were supposed to care for the child while she was in the bouncy castle were distracted by their smartphones when the tragedy happened, police found.
“The assistants fled after Valeria was found,” Ms. Kuchynska said.
The girl’s funeral took place on Wednesday.
“Anna is devastated by the loss. The funeral day was very difficult. We spent it on pills,” said the family friend.
Mykolaiv Region Police Chief Sergiy Shaikhet said: “It was preliminarily determined that a four-year-old girl became entangled in the loops on the wall of a bouncy castle while playing. According to preliminary findings of experts, the child died of suffocation.’
The 45-year-old owner of the bouncy castle was arrested by the police. She faces eight years if found guilty. The investigation is ongoing.
The 45-year-old owner of the bouncy castle was arrested by the police. She faces eight years if found guilty
Three staff who were supposed to look after the child while she was in the bouncy castle were distracted by their smartphones when the tragedy happened, police found