Muhammad Hamoud Al-Harbi, a Saudi, said many of these parks lack adequate safety measures. “We don’t know who we should blame for this, the Commerce Ministry, the municipality or the Civil Defense,” he told Arab News.
He said he noticed that some recreational equipment has sharp corners that could harm children.
“We have also seen that owners of recreational centers apply paints in order to cover worn out playing devices.”
The concern expressed by Al-Harbi is significant as a large number of people take their children to these fun parks to celebrate Eid Al-Fitr.
Saad Al-Badrani, also a Saudi, spoke about an accident he witnessed at a recreational center due to the negligence of its workers. A boy fell from an electric car when it hit another.
“The boy was injured and the official who was controlling the game did not do anything. The child’s father then took him to hospital,” he said, adding that most of these parks lacked first-aid centers.
Al-Badrani raised two important issues related to this case. First, the officials at these parks should be trained to provide first aid to children. Second, every park should have a first-aid facility and an ambulance to take injured children to hospital.
Saud Al-Khamlae said many recreational centers were using old children’s rides, suggesting it could be dangerous and cause fatal accidents. “Some of them are brought from neighboring countries after being used for several years,” he pointed out.
Speaking about another incident, Fahd Al-Aamir said a 20-year-old girl lost a portion of her scalp at a fun park in Jeddah.
The official in charge of the ride did not stop the machine despite her cries for help. “By the time a witness forced the woman official to stop the game the girl had lost her hair.”
