2 Arrested After Young Girl Dies From Bouncy Castle Injuries in UK
The identities of the man and woman arrested were not released.
— -- A 24-year-old woman and a 27-year-old man were arrested after a young girl died after sustaining serious injuries on a bouncy castle in Essex, England, police said.
The woman and man, both from Cambridgeshire, were arrested on suspicion of manslaughter by gross negligence, Essex Police said today. Essex police did not immediately release their identities.
Essex police said later today that the man and woman were bailed pending further inquiries and will report back on May 4.
The incident happened Saturday in Harlow Town Park in Essex, about 30 miles north of London.
The young girl, identified by Essex police today as 7-year-old Summer Grant, sustained serious injuries on a bouncy castle and was then taken to Princess Alexandra Hospital around 5 p.m., police said. She died a few hours later, police said.
Summer was from Braeford Close in Norwich, which is about 100 miles north of the park.
Ray Smith of the Showmen’s Guild of Great Britain blames the tragedy on a "freak gust of wind" around 4 p.m.
"It actually pulled the safety stakes out of the ground," he told Sky News.
Authorities are investigating the circumstances of the accident and are looking for any video from the scene, Essex Police said.
"We are trying to establish the circumstances surrounding how the girl came to be injured and I urge anyone who was at the event and witnessed the incident to contact me," Detective Inspector Daniel Stoten said.
"This is a very tragic incident where a young girl has lost her life. My deepest sympathies go out to her family," Stoten said.
"It's terrible. All our thoughts are with the family of that little girl," Smith told Sky News. "Everyone in the fair ground industry is shattered by this."