The Perils of Inflatable Rides

Go to any amusement park, street fair or even some backyard birthday parties, and there's a good chance you'll find an inflatable ride. They can be lots of fun for your kids, but they can also be very dangerous.

"Early Show" Consumer Correspondent Susan Koeppen points out more than 5,000 people are injured on inflatable rides every year. In some cases, these rides have blown away, throwing kids around. One expert even told Koeppen a bouncy house is one of the most dangerous rides you can let you child get on.

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Koeppen shared the story of Matthew Branham, a typical 5-year-old boy who was killed by one of these rides.

Matthew's stepfather Kelly Ruggiero said he was just a normal little boy who loved to rough house.

But in March, a horrible accident at an inflatable ride park in Wichita, Kan., ended his life.

Matthew and his mother Sarah Ruggiero were on a ride called the "King of the Hill." Sarah was helping to toss Matthew in the air, a trick she says the staff showed her how to do.

Sarah said, "We assumed that he would come right back down like all the other kids did."

But Matthew didn't come down onto the ride. Instead, he landed head-first on the concrete floor.

Sarah said, "I just kneeled by him and I just was praying for God to do a miracle, because I knew the outcome wasn't good."

Matthew died hours later at the hospital.

Koeppen pointed out the Consumer Product Safety Commission found between 2003 and 2007, 31,069 people went to the emergency room after being hurt on inflatable rides, and 85 percent of those injured were children under the age of 15. She added experts say accidents are common when jumpers of different sizes get on together -- or when bouncy houses blow away.

This past January in Florida, a 5-year-old girl had to be rescued after an inflatable ride blew into a lake.
Koeppen also showed photos of a child dangling from an inflatable obstacle course after it flew into the air at park in Ohio.

Mike Triplett, a inflatable inspector, said, "Inflatables have a high rate of accidents."

Triplett works in New Jersey, one of the few states in the country to regulate inflatables. He says these rides are often set up and used improperly.

Koeppen and her team checked out some inflatable rides in New York City. She said it didn't take long to find some dangerous situations. Her team found a ride being held down with weighted buckets.

Triplett said of the scene, "The bucket could tip over and you'd have nothing tying the ride down at all. The ride could fly away; people could get injured."

Another ride was tethered to a fire hydrant.

Triplet remarked, "That's absolutely not acceptable. They have to be tied down with stakes or with sandbags."

Another ride was too close to a tree, according to Triplett. And the blower on another ride, Triplett found to be a hazard because there was a kink in the tube, restricting air to the ride.

At another New York City ride, no operator supervised the jumpers.

Triplett said, "This is not a safe situation."

Sarah Ruggerio says there were no employees supervising the ride at the time her son Matthew was killed.

"People go to these things every day not realizing the dangers that they're walking into."

Koeppen added Matthew's parents are in the process of filing a claim against Pure Entertainment, the facility where Matthew died. A lawyer for the facility's insurance company says the tragic incident is being investigated.

Just last week, the city of Wichita suspended Pure Entertainment's license for 90 days saying their inflatable rides were not properly inspected.

So what can parents do to keep their kids safe?

Koeppen suggested parents check if the ride is tied down with stakes and sandbags. She said children shouldn't use them if winds are more than 15 miles per hour. Also, there should be mats around the entrance or any spot where a child can fall off. She added jumpers shouldn't be under age 3, and jumpers should all be around the same size.