Hillcrest jumping castle oval a ‘known windy area’
Ethan James |
The oval where the jumping castle at the centre of the Hillcrest Primary School tragedy was set up was a known windy area, the mother of one of the victims has told an inquest.
Addison Stewart, Chace Harrison, Jye Sheehan, Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones, Peter Dodt and Zane Mellor were killed when a freak wind gust lifted the castle into the air in December 2021.
The students, all aged 11 or 12, were enjoying end-of-year celebrations when the tragedy occurred.
A long-awaited inquest began on Monday in the northwest Tasmanian city of Devonport and will run for four days this week before further hearings in November and February.
Zane Mellor’s mother Georgie Burt is a former Hillcrest student and said she had a 30-year association with the school.
She said the oval was “absolutely” known as a windy spot and she used to play a game as a student to see who could have their hat blown the farthest.
“It has always been a windy area; the geography, it makes a wind kind of tunnel up through there,” she said.
The inquest was earlier told conditions had been calm on the morning of the tragedy before a sudden “dust devil” launched the castle 16 metres into the air along with other inflatable equipment.
The inquest will examine weather monitoring and potential deficiencies by Tasmania’s education department.
Speaking outside the inquest, Ms Burt said she hoped for safety reform, particularly considering recent accidents elsewhere in Australia.
Earlier in September, five children in NSW and Victoria were taken to hospital after they were injured in separate incidents involving jumping castles and wind.
“I don’t think there will ever be a complete amount of closure when it comes to losing our children,” Ms Burt said.
“I hope for better protocols. I hope for law change. I hope that people can have a really good look.”
A representative from the state’s health service will give evidence on Tuesday.
Tasmania Ambulance chief executive Nicole Ashworth said the effects of the day were still being felt and several paramedics remained off work.
The ambulance service made several changes as a result of the tragedy, including around the accessibility of blood products, she said on Monday.
“(However) I don’t think anything Ambulance Tasmania did or didn’t do on the day was going to change the outcome unfortunately,” she said.
The operator of the jumping castle, Rosemary Gamble, who was cleared of criminal workplace safety breaches in 2025, is expected to give evidence at a later hearing block.
AAP