By Jeanette Tan | Yahoo!
Newsroom – 10 hours
ago
A five-year-old boy veered off a
platform and fell into a safety net at the Singapore
Flyer last
Sunday evening, after his father lost grip of the stroller the boy
was seated in.
The New Paper (TNP) reported that the boy’s father, known as Mr
Tan, had just disembarked from a capsule after the 30-minute ferris
wheel ride when he accidentally let go of his son’s
stroller.
According to Singapore Flyer centre manager
Thiru Ramayah, who spoke to the same paper, the stroller rolled
down the disembarkation platform, which is sloped, and slipped off
it, falling about half a metre into a safety net
below.
After hearing a shout for “code red”,
Ramayah saw what had happened in his closed-circuit television
monitor from the Flyer’s command centre, and rushed out to ensure
that the five-year-old was unharmed.
“The boy appeared to have been tipped out
of his stroller and trapped under it,” said Ramayah to TNP, adding that three technicians lowered a rescue ladder to the
safety net to help the boy up.
Senior technician Glenn Villaflores told
the paper that the boy was “crying non-stop” and seemed very
afraid.
“Everything happened very quickly,” said
the 28-year-old. “We were very focused on getting the child to
safety.”
Ramayah added that Mr and Mrs Tan seemed
equally traumatised by what had happened, saying that Mrs Tan was
also sobbing. The family was led to a quiet area to calm down after
the crew had rescued the five-year-old.
“We offered them water, and one of my staff
members even bought stuffed animals from the gift shop for the boy
and his younger sister to try to calm them down,” he
said.
The Flyer was halted for four minutes as
the rescue effort took place, and Ramayah said there was no need
for an announcement to be made because it was over so
quickly.
A spokesperson for the Flyer
told Yahoo!
Singapore that the safety net installed below the wheel can
support loads of up to 300kg.
She also said that members of staff are
stationed along the boarding and disembarkation decks, as well as
in a control room, to ensure that guests are looked after at all
times.
“This ensures that staff members on ground
are able to react quickly to any emergency,” she
said.
Railings are also installed along the
boarding and disembarkation decks, and staff members stationed
right beside the capsule entry and exit points to usher guests
safely, added the spokesperson.
“The Singapore Flyer takes the safety of
our guests very seriously and we hope that our guests will also
exercise caution and responsibility to ensure their safety,” she
said.