Tasmanian jumping castle operator charged over tragedy
The operator of a jumping castle that became airborne, killing six children, has been charged with an offence under Tasmania’s workplace safety laws.
The operator of a jumping castle that became airborne, killing six children, has been charged under Tasmania’s workplace safety laws.
Tasmania’s Director of Public Prosecutions charged Taz-Zorb with an offence under the Work Health and Safety Act, relating to the December 16, 2021, incident at Devonport’s Hillcrest Primary School.
“This offence alleges that the operator failed to comply with a health and safety duty in a way that exposed the children to a risk of death or serious injury,” Tasmanian Work Health and Safety Regulator Robyn Pearce said.
“This decision comes after a significant investigation undertaken by WorkSafe Tasmania staff, which involved many months of work.
“Throughout the last year I have continued to meet with the families of the children who died or were injured in this incident, and would again like to express my condolences to each of them.”
The offence is “category two” under the legislation, carrying fines of up to $1.5m for a company and $300,000 for an individual acting as a business.
The children have been named as Chace Harrison, Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones, Zane Mellor, Addison Stewart, Jye Sheehan and Peter Dodt.
Maurice Blackburn Lawyers released a joint statement on behalf of families of four of the children. “We welcome the announcement that charges have been laid,” the statement said.
“This was a terrible tragedy that claimed the lives of our beautiful children and which has left others both physically and emotionally impacted. We know WorkSafe has worked tirelessly in their investigation into what went wrong on that fateful day and we thank them for their hard work.
“We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the first responders and medical staff who took care of our children. We would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the incredibly brave children who ran to the assistance of their injured friends and classmates.”
Taz-Zorb has been contacted but is yet to respond.
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