An inflatable attraction collapses again: who answers for it?
Part of the roof of a "Deep Sea Treasure" inflatable attraction at a tourism company in Huangshan collapsed on 20 July, injuring several people and killing a girl of eight; the cause is still under investigation. Under Article 37 of the Tort Liability Law the operator and organiser of a public place owe a duty of safety, which requires them to foresee dangers, inspect and maintain the equipment and take preventive measures, and under Article 41 a producer is liable for loss caused by a defective product, so either or both may be responsible.
On 20 July part of the roof of the "Deep Sea Treasure" inflatable attraction at Huangshan Fengda International Tourism Co. Ltd gave way, injuring several people. A girl of eight, Cai (female, born April 2011), was injured and died despite emergency treatment at the scene and resuscitation at Huangshan District People's Hospital. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.
The recording of the girl's mother crying for help is heartbreaking, and readers have expressed grief and regret. Many mothers said they could not bear to watch the video of a life so young. Others wrote that they had themselves come across such safety hazards and hoped that the safety of inflatable attractions would be taken seriously.
After a tragedy of this kind, who bears responsibility?
The tragedy has happened, but whether the girl died from the fall as the structure collapsed or from being crushed in the crowd cannot be established from the video. More important is why the structure collapsed, and who should answer for it.
Article 37 of the Tort Liability Law of the People's Republic of China, headed "tort liability for breach of the duty of safety", provides that the manager of a public place such as a hotel, shopping mall, bank, station or place of entertainment, or the organiser of a mass activity, who fails to perform the duty of safety and causes harm to another, bears tort liability; and that where harm is caused by the act of a third party, the third party bears tort liability, and the manager or organiser who has failed to perform the duty of safety bears supplementary liability to the extent corresponding to its fault.
Article 41, headed "product liability of the producer", provides that where a defective product causes harm to another, the producer bears tort liability.
There are therefore two possible bearers of liability.
1. The manager or organiser and operator of the amusement facility.
2. The producer of the inflatable attraction.
The cause of the accident has not yet been established. Under the Tort Liability Law, the Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Consumers and related provisions, however, it is clear that both the operator and the management of the inflatable attraction bear responsibility that cannot be shifted. The operator or management should reasonably foresee the dangers that the facilities and premises it operates or manages may present, inspect and maintain those facilities regularly, and take corresponding preventive measures to perform its duty of safety and prevent harm to others.
As for the producer, if the later investigation shows that the inflatable attraction had a defect in product quality or a safety fault, then the producer bears the corresponding liability for harm caused by the defective product.
Image: Weibo
Do not let an amusement park become a place of grief
It is now the summer holiday, when parents take their children to amusement parks of every kind. Recent months have seen one frightening accident after another in Chinese parks: 34 visitors stranded in mid-air in Changsha, Hunan; a mother and two children trapped in the air for two hours when a parachute ride failed in Taishun, Zhejiang; two children stuck ten metres up when a roller coaster broke down in Jiujiang, Jiangxi; a child left hanging in the air when a roller coaster partly left its track in Gaoyou, Jiangsu; and 20 people suspended in mid-air for 30 minutes when equipment failed in Dalian, Liaoning.
Have these facilities been licensed and inspected by the competent departments? Have the managers and operators of the parks been trained and certificated by the competent authorities? Are the facilities maintained, inspected and tested as required? These are questions the authorities concerned should be addressing.
Facilities that do not meet the standards should be dealt with promptly, by the park and by the authorities alike, and no one should gamble on things turning out all right.
Parents should not take their children to venues that operate without a licence or the necessary qualifications. Even in a properly licensed park they should perform their duty of supervision while the child plays, keeping the child in view at all times rather than letting the child go unattended.
Do not let an amusement park become a place of grief, and do not let the tragedy happen again.