Multiple children were hurt in what authorities have described as an inflatable slide mishap at a park in Suffolk County Tuesday morning, according to police.
Suffolk County Police say officers responded to the Wyandanch Park scene on Mount Avenue following reports of a blow-up slide tipping over around 9:45 a.m. Surveillance video obtained by NBC New York showed the slide buckle and then flip over, tossing kids off and onto the tennis courts below.
The children were at the park as part of field day for elementary school students in the Wyandanch School District, police said.
There were 14 children on the slide, ages 6 and 7 years old, according to police. One child was transported to a hospital with a broken leg.
Suffolk Deputy Fire Coordinator Paul Miller said that 11 people were treated at the scene. and were released to their parents or guardians. Miller said seven others in total were taken by ambulance to hospitals.
Chopper 4 was over the scene with heavy police presence. First responders were seen tending to some of the hurt while tennis courts had a number of deflated bounce houses.
Meanwhile, in a statement to News 4 New York, Wyandanch School District's Superintendent Dr. Gina Talbert said that students of the Lafrancis Hardiman Elementary School were enjoying field day on the slide when it started to deflate.
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"Several students were transported by ambulance to the hospital for observation and treatment as needed," Talbert's statement read in part. "We recognize this is a very scary event witnessed by our young scholars, staff, and families and we are deeply concerned about how this could have happened."
According to Talbert, the district has kicked off an investigation into the cause of the incident, including working with the company that provided the inflatables.
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"The district has immediately initiated a thorough investigation, including working with the company who provided the inflatables, into the cause of this situation," Talbert said. "We will provide more information as available. At this time, our priority is the health and well-being of the students who may have been injured and those students who attended the event."
Workers for the company that installed the inflatables refused to coment.
