Adults these days are always complaining about how kids spend so much time glued to their devices, and occasionally, the adults will even look up from their own social media feeds and latest doom-scrolling obsessions to reminisce about how much fun it was to play at playgrounds during their own childhoods. They probably have some wild stories about injuries they sustained on the playground, perhaps even complete with permanent scars.
Yes, playground equipment was more dangerous when Generation X kids were left to wander to the park by themselves. Newly built jungle gyms of plastic and metal gave you electric shocks that you can still feel decades later. If you fell off a slide or a swing, you landed on the astroturf, or worse, the hard concrete, instead of the soft playground mulch made out of recycled tires. Perhaps a few premises liability claims have led to increased safety standards for playground equipment. If your child suffered a preventable injury because of dangerous playground equipment at a public park, contact a Santa Fe slip-and-fall and premises liability lawyer.
Family Narrowly Avoids Catastrophe on Chute Slide at Albuquerque Park
In 2024, children and their parents eagerly anticipated the opening of an enormous chute slide at Juan Tabo Hills Park in Albuquerque. The slide is of such a size that one typically only finds at county fairs and at amusement parks that charge a hefty price for admission. It is built on the side of a steep hill, and guests climb up 94 stairs to get to the top before sliding down. On both sides of the slide are concrete platforms where bystanders can watch brave souls slide down the slide. Signs posted at the bottom of the stairs indicate that the slide is for children between the ages of 5 and 12.
In October 2024, shortly after the slide opened, a boy named Oliver had a close call with disaster. Oliver was 3 years old, but he weighed 35 pounds, making him only slightly smaller than some 5-year-olds. He climbed the enormous flight of stairs with his father, while his mother filmed their adventure on her phone from the bottom of the slide. Shortly after Oliver began sliding, he flew over the age of the slide as he slid past one of its curves. The only reason he did not get hurt is that an older boy who was standing on the concrete next to the slide caught him.
Unless local authorities modify the slide to make it harder for riders to fly off of it, someone will inevitably get hurt. It is more difficult to prevail in premises liability claims arising from injuries at recreational areas that the public may use free of charge, but installing an inherently dangerous slide at a public park counts as negligence.
Contact Slate Stern About Premises Liability Lawsuits
Slate Stern is a personal injury lawyer who represents plaintiffs injured as a result of dangerous playground equipment. Contact Slate Stern in Santa Fe, New Mexico, or call (505)814-1517 to discuss your case.
Sources
https://www.kob.com/news/top-news/social-media-video-spurs-discussion-about-new-giant-chute-slide
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash