Recreational facilities come under safety spotlight

Several high-profile accidents have prompted calls for stronger regulation. Hou Liqiang reports.

They are designed to bring happiness and excitement. However, they occasionally have accidents in which people lose their lives, are paralyzed or break bones.

They are expected to bring quick profits from low outlay, but some operators have been left with heavy financial burdens after paying large amounts of compensation in the wake of tragic accidents.

They are new recreational facilities, such as inflatable houses, bouncy castles and "air trampolines", whose numbers have risen nationwide in recent years in an increasingly wide range of styles.

Experts have said the rapid development of the recreational facility sector poses challenges for authorities. They need to ramp up supervision in an appropriate and timely manner to prevent accidents, especially minor ones, at facilities, many of which are not covered by national safety standards, laws or regulations.

The experts have also noted a lack of safety awareness among both operators and customers.

They added that although government supervision should focus on ensuring that operators adhere strictly to safety measures, customers also need to learn about potential problems because it will be almost impossible to avoid accidents if they ignore instructions intended to help minimize risks at such facilities.

Recently, the sector has made headlines as a result of accidents at venues across the country.

In a case that went viral on the internet, a candidate for a master's in medical sciences was left as a wheelchair user after she was "catapulted" from a 2-meter-deep inflatable trampoline fitted with a jump air pillow bag.

In May, the student－known only as "Qiqi"－from Xuzhou, Jiangsu province, visited the venue with her cousin and boyfriend. The object of the attraction, called "The Human Body Bomb", is for players to be launched into the air as their companions jump from an elevated position and land on the taut surface.

However, as the two men landed, Qiqi was "blasted off" as if she were doing a backward somersault, as an online video shows.

Although Qiqi landed in an enclosure full of soft, air-filled plastic balls, she hit them headfirst, and quickly realized she could not move.

After being rushed to a hospital, Qiqi was diagnosed with paraplegia, meaning she had lost all sensation and control of the motor functions in her lower body.