Ipswich mother’s warning as children left with “burning, itchy rash” from possible chemicals on Annabelle Park playground

A mother has issued a stark warning after several children who used a slide at a popular Ipswich playground were left covered in burning rashes which spread to the adults who tried to help them.

A mother has issued a stark warning after several children who used a slide at a popular Ipswich playground were left covered in burning rashes and hives which spread to the adults who tried to help them.

What was supposed to be a fun day out at Ipswich’s Annabelle Park instead ended in a trip to the emergency room for Natasha Blair, her children and several children who she was looking after.

Ms Blair, who runs a family day care, said she took her daughter, son and other children aged between two and 12 to Annabelle Park yesterday morning.

She said she hadn’t been at the park for long when she heard her daughter start screaming.

“My daughter and some of the daycare kids (started using) the slide and they were fine, and then by the time she had down about three trips done she started screaming.

“I thought she had been bit by an ant and I went over to her and she started feeling itchy over her whole entire body

“It looked like welts coming up but it was actually a rash pretty much come up over her whole entire body cause she had gone up and down (the slide).

“Then another one of the little kids started screaming, and then all three of them that had gone down the slide started reacting on their bums, but since (her daughter) lied on her back it was all over her body.

The children had a reaction which included a burning rash after using the slide at Annabelle Park. Picture: Ipswich City Council

“I pretty much stripped them right down at the park and poured water over the top of them, but in hindsight I probably just should have called an ambulance, but I thought they had just been bitten.

“I put them in the pram and went straight home to chuck them into a cold bath or shower, which I did but that made it worse.”

She said the children had been “hysteric” and the situation had been “traumatic” for them.

“The ones who really got hurt were two two-year-olds, a six-year-old and a 12-year-old,” she said.

“They were hysteric, the younger ones didn’t know what was going on, we didn’t know what was going on.

“As I helped them my arms and my legs and my stomach flared up with the rash and the burning.

“Another girl that helped them, she got the exact same thing … then the parents who came and picked them up so we could go to hospital, they got reactions on them from whatever was touched on the slide.

“My son climbed up (the slide) to see and I looked at it and there was no residue but whatever was on it was transferring from person to person within like seconds.”

She said everybody affected had two lots of antihistamines and within about three hours everything had subsided.

Ms Blair said she was leaning towards thinking the reaction was caused by a chemical being poured on the slide.

“Apparently some kids think it’s a good joke around school holidays to do that kind of stuff,” she said.

“I still just have no idea … the hospital said it could be caterpillars but a doctor came in and said it couldn’t be.

Ms Blair said the hospital also said it could have been from fibreglass however an Ipswich City Council spokesman said the slides were made of plastic.

Ms Blair said the council were “very apologetic” and sent out an urgent crew to look at the playground.

She also posted to a Bellbird Park community group on Facebook to warn other people about what had happened.

“Council is aware of an incident at Annabelle Park, Bellbird Park,” a council spokesman told the Queensland Times.

“The playground equipment has been barricaded while the matter is investigated.

“At this stage it is unclear what has caused the issue, but council officers have pressure-washed a children’s slide at the park.

“Council advises members of public to stay off the equipment until the issue has been resolved.”

Originally published as Ipswich mother’s warning as children left with “burning, itchy rash” from possible chemicals on Annabelle Park playground