Tuesday, 12 October 2010

I Wondered Why They Called It ‘Ambulance Chasing’…

A mum may sue Essex County Council after her daughter broke both wrists in a fall at a country park.
She stumbled?

Not exactly:
Rhianna Wallace, ten, fell about 8ft from a climbing frame at Great Notley Country Park.
Ah. And mum is keen to see if there’s some compo to be had, is she?
Her mum, Brina Smith, said: “Rhianna is desperate to go back on the playground.

“She likes trampolining, but she can’t risk that either.”
Errr, well, no, indeed. Who’d let her on one with her wrists in plaster, and who’d you sue if she fell off a trampoline in her own garden?

Does she have a case?
Miss Smith, who also has two children under the age of three, claims the county council should have put a thicker layer of wood chippings under the play equipment to cushion youngsters’ falls.
Ah. So, a H&S expert has been called to check whether the required depth (there must be regulations, right?) has been complied with?

Well…
A report by a paramedic, called to the scene after the accident, noted Rhianna had fallen on “a hard surface” and described the area as “hazardous”.
Now, I’m not denigrating the skills of paramedics, but I don’t think they are qualified for that, are they?
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6 comments:

  1. Shaun Pilkington12 October 2010 at 10:50

    Hopefully they can tell the difference between 'hard' and 'soft' but if they're anything like the ones in Sussex, maybe not...

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-11509947

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-11438290

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  2. Sue12 October 2010 at 11:20

    Presumably, the mother has some observation skills too? I wouldn't have let my little ones play in a place I considered unsafe. Don't parents take responsibility for their own children any longer?

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  3. Woman on a Raft12 October 2010 at 11:23

    These are the contractors. It all seems to have been installed properly. I doubt woodchips would have made the slightest difference to this accident.

    Overview of the installations ordered for the park.

    The Climbing Structure 01 (listed on case study)

    Full brochure of parent company. It is marketed as Timberplay in the UK as the German company's name does not trip easily off the tongue.

    She might not have fallen so hard if she had more experience climbing on a tots' playground first. Children don't get enough chance to clamber about, with the result that the first time they get near a bigger piece they fall on their heads.

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  4. Shaun Pilkington12 October 2010 at 11:46

    "Don't parents take responsibility for their own children any longer?"

    You're smart enough for me to assume that's a rhetorical question!

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  5. Bucko12 October 2010 at 12:58

    Maybe some bubble wrap on the bars, too? FFS!

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  6. JuliaM13 October 2010 at 05:19

    "but if they're anything like the ones in Sussex, maybe not..."

    Good grief! That's on a par with the cops who missed the knife sticking out of the 'natural causes' death...

    "Presumably, the mother has some observation skills too?"

    Ah, Sue. That's for other people to concern themselves with. As Shaun points out, personal responsibility seems to no longer exist.

    "I doubt woodchips would have made the slightest difference to this accident. "

    Indeed. And the point about early experience in climbing is well made.

    "Maybe some bubble wrap on the bars, too?"

    I wouldn't be surprised to hear someone propose it. Would you?

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