A tragic incident occurred when a three-year-old girl lost her life as a result of a bouncy castle being swept into the air by a sudden burst of wind during a party at a park in Montreal. The incident also left eleven people injured, with six of them being taken to the hospital after strong winds lifted the bouncy castle and a tent into the air on May 31 at Parc Ouellet in LaSalle, southwest of Montreal, Canada.
The unfortunate event took place during a party organized by a church in the city park, as wind speeds reached up to 31mph (50kph) on a Sunday afternoon. Cathy Denis, the owner of a bouncy castle rental company in Quebec, mentioned that she refrains from setting up or operating inflatables when weather forecasts predict speeds exceeding 24 mph (38 kmph). She highlighted that due to their large surface area, inflatables can be easily moved by sudden gusts even when properly installed, making them susceptible to strong winds.
This is not an isolated incident, as similar tragedies have occurred in the past. In 2022, an eight-year-old girl lost her life and eight other children were injured when strong winds lifted a bouncy castle several meters into the air during a fair in Mislata, near Valencia, Spain. Also, in 2021, six children died and three were seriously injured when a gust of wind lifted a jumping castle approximately 10 meters into the air during an end-of-year celebration at Hillcrest Primary School in Devonport, Australia’s island state of Tasmania.
In a separate incident in 2017, a six-year-old girl lost her life, and six other children were injured when an inflatable bouncy castle broke free from its anchors and flew into the air in Caldes de Malavella, northeastern Spain, causing the children to fall to the ground. Investigations were conducted to determine if the accident resulted from anchoring failures or equipment malfunction.
A coroner has been appointed to investigate the circumstances leading to the recent tragedy in Montreal. Health Canada recommends that operators of inflatable structures securely anchor them to the ground to prevent movement, tipping over, or being lifted by the wind. Similarly, the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) advises against using inflatables in winds exceeding 24mph (38kph) and suggests monitoring wind speeds with an anemometer when operating inflatables outdoors.
According to a 2013 study by the Public Health Agency of Canada, there were 674 reported injuries associated with inflatable attractions between 1990 and 2009 through the Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program. The study revealed that children aged two to nine accounted for the majority of injuries, with fractures comprising over a third of the reported cases.
