00:00The events of December 16, 2021 sent shock and grief through Devonport in northwest Tasmania
00:10and beyond. Six children died and three were seriously injured when a gust of wind lifted
00:17an inflatable jumping castle into the air. Today, nearly three years later, a criminal
00:23hearing began in the Magistrates' Court in Devonport. The jumping castle's operator,
00:29Rosemary Gamble, trading as TasZorb, has pleaded not guilty to one count of failure to comply
00:36with health and safety duty. Crown Prosecutor Madeleine Wilson SC told the court the children
00:42had been enjoying an end-of-year school event when strong wind, described as a mini-tornado,
00:48struck. She quoted students who witnessed the tragedy. One said,
01:08A third student described seeing their friends fall from the castle as it flew through the air.
01:14The prosecution alleges the defendant only secured the castle at four of the eight anchorage points
01:20despite having enough pegs on the day and that the pegs didn't comply with Australian standards.
01:26It also alleges Ms Gamble had access to star pickets, which were compliant. Ms Wilson said
01:34the defendant owed a duty that as far as reasonably practical that the health and
01:39safety of children should not be put at risk. Defence lawyer Chris Dockray SC said Ms Gamble
01:46received written confirmation from the manufacturer that the castle met Australian standards before
01:51buying it. It came with only the four pegs which were used and the manufacturer didn't provide a
01:57manual. Instead, Ms Gamble downloaded one from the website. He said,
02:09He said the wind was so substantial that the anchor system would have failed regardless
02:14and quoted an expert witness who called it,
02:24Emotions ran high in court. Ms Gamble wept as details of the children's injuries were read out
02:32and at one stage a victim's parents said to Ms Gamble,
02:39before leaving the court. The hearing is expected to run for two weeks.
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