Seven-year-old boy rushed to hospital after receiving 'electric shock' on Costa del Sol fairground attraction
His mother has appealed for help after the child apparently touched some wires near an inflatable bouncy castle in Caleta de Vélez during the town's Virgen del Carmen celebrations
A seven-year-old boy from Algarrobo on the eastern Costa del Sol was rushed to hospital on Wednesday 16 July after suffering what appears to have been an electric shock. The child had apparently touched some wires which were near a lamp that was being used to illuminate a bouncy castle in the port area of Caleta de Vélez (Vélez-Málaga).
The boy's mother took him to a nearby ambulance when he told her that his hand and foot were "hurting and burning". He also said, "I can't slow my heart, it's beating so fast."
The child had been playing on an inflatable bouncy castle with some friends when he touched "two black wires together" which were on a large spotlight with a metal base next to the attraction.
"I was very anxious and went to tell the person in charge of the attraction, then I remembered that there was an ambulance, a mobile intensive care unit, there for the procession of the Virgen del Carmen and I took my child quickly to be attended to," the boy's mother, Indira Torres, explained to SUR on Friday. She has reported the incident to the National Police.
After an initial assessment at the scene, the child was taken to the Hospital Comarcal de la Axarquía in neighbouring Torre del Mar, where he underwent various tests to rule out possible heart or kidney damage. He was discharged from hospital at around 11am on Thursday.
Doctors have ruled out internal injuries as a result of the electric shock, although according to the little boy's statements and the check-up he underwent, it would seem that he did receive and electric shock, which entered through his left hand and came out through his left foot. "He had a red spot on his left foot," explained Indira, who has explained what happened on social media and has appealed for possible witnesses to provide photos or videos of the attraction.
"Don't let it happen to any child again".
The mother has also asked the National Police to obtain the images from the security cameras located in the port area. "I don't want this to happen again to any other child, fortunately nothing happened to mine, but it could have been a tragedy," said Torres, who added that no one from the company responsible for the attraction has contacted her so far to inquire about the boy's condition.
According to other witnesses, the attraction remained in operation until 2am "My husband saw a Local Police officer patrol in the area and told them about it, but they did not stop the attraction. It seems that what had happened wasn't enough because from what they told my husband, the automatic trip switch worked... I don't know, if it was necessary to wait for another child to touch the cable and get fried then maybe it would have stopped," Indira argued.
She went on to say, "Children kept going in and out of the attraction, as if nothing had happened. How many other incidents have to happen? she asked, adding, "We are talking about the safety of our children. If by any chance someone had taken photos of their children there last night, I would be grateful if you could send them to me, because by the time I noticed that and asked someone to take them, the light bulb and the cables were curiously no longer there."
