Recently, a sudden strong wind occurred near Qixing International in Saratoga Town, Baotou City, Inner Mongolia. An outdoor inflatable castle was overturned, resulting in 10 injuries, including 6 children and 4 adults.
According to a clerk from a nearby store who spoke to Qilu Evening News, before the rain on the evening of August 15, there was a gust of strong wind. Despite the inflatable castle having fixed facilities, it could not withstand the strong wind. “The inflatable castle was blown over, and five or six children were trapped. Fire and ambulance vehicles arrived, taking those children to the hospital.”
Witnesses claimed that there were five or six ambulances on the scene.
The inflatable castle involved was set up during a recent exchange meeting in the area, as introduced by the aforementioned clerk. The exchange meeting was expected to last for about ten days, and the inflatable castle had only been in operation for two or three days before the accident occurred.
On August 17, CCTV News reported that the incident happened around 20:40 on August 15, as informed by the Emergency Management Bureau of Tumot Right Banner, Baotou City. It caused injuries to 10 individuals (6 children, 4 adults). Presently, five individuals have been discharged, while five others are still under observation and treatment in the hospital.
However, the report did not specify the extent of the injuries. Local netizens mentioned that one child was in the ICU, and a WeChat fundraising initiative had been started.
At 18:55 on the 15th, Baotou Meteorological Observatory issued a yellow wind warning, forecasting that Baotou City would be affected by strong winds within the next 12 hours, with an average wind force reaching above level 8 and gusts exceeding level 9.
A netizen commented, “My sister was there that day, but fortunately, she felt something was wrong and left early, she didn’t even have time to put on her shoes, just picked them up and ran.”
Some netizens questioned, “That night, Dapu even saw the lightning strikes in Baotou. Did adults not see the sky turning white in Saratoga? Did they wait for the rain to come? They said they didn’t have time, but I saw the weather was wrong and hurried home.”
Others expressed, “Incidents like this occur frequently in Saratoga, I know of at least three cases, some even resulted in fatalities! They don’t learn from their mistakes!” “The emergency bureau in Saratoga is so amazing, they ban things and yet still allow them to be used.”