Five children have died and five others are badly injured after a bouncy castle they were playing on during an end-of-year celebration at a primary school in Tasmania was blown up into the air by strong winds.
The police said a gust of wind lifted the bouncy castle into the air and the children playing inside fell from a height of about 10 metres.
“A wind event caused a jumping castle to lift into the air,” Tasmania police said in its initial statement.
The fifth and sixth-grade students were paying during their last day of term at Hillcrest Primary School in Devonport when the freak accident took place.
Emergency services, including two helicopters, were rushed to the school to transport the children to the hospital.
Australian prime minister Scott Morrison said the accident was “unthinkably heartbreaking” and extended an offer of support to the local administration.
