Mesquite, Texas is where it all went down. Several students at a Mesquite ISD elementary school got hurt after a powerful gust of wind decided to play a prank and lifted a bounce house they were in. School officials spilled the tea, saying that the students got injured during a play day event at Lawrence Elementary. The injured kiddos were rushed to the hospital for a once-over.
Who saw this coming? WFAA caught up with a fourth-grade student who was involved in the chaos. The student’s fam wanted to keep things on the down-low. “I saw one of my classmates chilling on the ground knocked out,” spilled the student. “I saw a bunch of my classmates bawling their eyes out.” The student spilled the beans that a fourth-grade class was having a blast on the bounce house when a gust of wind came out of nowhere. “It was leaning a bit, and then it straight-up took flight,” described the student. “I knew I was going to get hurt somehow, but I didn’t know how. It was really scary, not gonna lie.”
Fifth-grader Isrea Rodriguez was there to witness the madness. He dashed to alert the teachers and jumped in to help his fellow students. “A few of my homies ran over there too to give me a hand in getting the kids out from under the mess. Then, we started checking on the kids on the ground,” Rodriguez shared. His mom, Vicenta Rodriguez, couldn’t help but gush about her son’s bravery. “The fact that his teacher was like, ‘Yo, he’s a hero, he’s mad brave for doing that,’ it warms my heart,” Vicenta shared.
The district made it clear that none of the injuries were life-threatening. Some students did end up with broken bones, but thankfully, no one else was harmed. The school day continued indoors, with the rest of the play day festivities getting axed by the district. Counselors were on standby for any students or staff members needing some extra support after the incident. “The district is on it with an immediate investigation into what really went down. We’re all about making sure this never happens again,” the district stated. “Nothing matters more than keeping the kids safe and sound.”
Students spilled the tea that the bounce house was on concrete and was supposedly secured with sandbags. “There was, like, one big sandbag, and then a bunch of smaller ones,” one student mentioned. “The bags weren’t all the way on it. They were kind of hanging off the edge. That’s a safety hazard, yo, ’cause you’re supposed to strap it down with those metal things for the grass. Plus, it was on concrete,” Rodriguez added. WFAA tried to reach out to the bounce house company for some answers but got radio silence. “If you can’t properly weigh those things down, find a different spot for them,” Vicenta threw in her two cents.
As a precautionary measure, Mesquite ISD decided to take a rain check on using any outdoor bounce houses for the rest of the school year. “We’re all about keeping it real when it comes to student safety. We need time to take a deep dive into what went down and why,” the district explained. “Once we figure it out, we’ll decide if we’re gonna bring back the bounce houses for future events.” Bounce ‘N’ More, the bounce house rental company, expressed their sadness about the incident and assured everyone that they’ve always been about safety first. “We’ve been running the show for almost 20 years and have kept things drama-free. Safety is our jam, and we’re all about following the rules to a T,” the company stated. They promised to do a deep dive into what happened and reiterated their commitment to keeping the community safe.
This story is still unfolding, so keep your eyes peeled for updates.
