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British lawmaker calls for bouncy castle ban after girl's death

British lawmaker calls for bouncy castle ban after girl's death
Posted at 9:37 AM, Jul 02, 2018
and last updated 2018-07-02 10:37:05-04

A British MP has called for a temporary ban on bouncy castles in public places after a girl was thrown from one and killed by the English seaside on Sunday.

The UK's Press Association (PA) cited witnesses as saying the inflatable trampoline had exploded and flung the girl into the air, at the beach in Gorleston-on-Sea in Norfolk, in England's east. Lifeboat crews and witnesses were unable to save the girl, who later died in hospital.

Conservative MP Robert Halfon called for the ban on Twitter Sunday evening. Halfon represents Harlow, Essex, where a 7-year-old girl, Summer Grant, was killed when a bouncy castle blew away at an Easter fair in 2016.

"After two horrific tragedies, Government need to look at update of regulations and inspection regime and consider a temporary ban on bouncy castles in public areas until we can be sure that they are safe," he tweeted.

He said he had asked Parliament's speaker to allow him to bring up an unscheduled "urgent question" on the issue during Monday's session in the House of Commons.

Another MP, Thangam Debbonaire from the main opposition Labour Party, said on Twitter Monday that there should be a product recall until the causes of the girl's death on Sunday were determined.

"Parents and children have a right to know and to expect safety from children's play equipment," she wrote.

The East of England Ambulance Service said it received more than a dozen calls related to the incident, according to PA.

"The young female was seriously injured and in cardiac arrest on our arrival, and was conveyed to James Paget Hospital. Sadly, despite all of the efforts and interventions, she was pronounced deceased."

Images from the scene showed police guarding a cordoned-off area with the deflated bouncy castle inside.

In the 2016 case of Summer Grant's death, a married couple who worked the fairground, William and Shelby Thurston, were jailed for three years after they being found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence and of a health and safety offense, PA reported.