A DAD has told of the horrifying moment his three-year-old daughter was injured when a bouncy castle trailer flew into them in a freak “tornado”.
Little Esmae-Sherren Bonser was rushed to hospital in a neck brace after being knocked to the ground headfirst when winds struck a Yorkshire park yesterday.
Her dad Tom told the SunOnline how he had put Esmae on his shoulders so he could run them to safety as winds ripped through the Father’s Day picnic event in Howden.
But the gales were so strong that a trailer transporting the bouncy castles blew into them, knocking them both to the floor.
“It was something I’ve never witnessed before in my life. It was like something from a film,” Tom said.
“The winds came from nowhere. I picked my daughter up and chucked her over my shoulder and we were running along.
“The wind was so strong that the trailer knocked me over with my daughter.
“It blew the trailer into us. And because she was on my shoulders she landed head down.
“I was on my back with a trailer blown into me, which was agonising.
“I was holding the trailer back and shouting about my daughter: ‘Get her away, get her away’.”
Four men then had to step in to hold the trailer back so Tom and his daughter could be pulled to safety.
Dramatic footage has captured the moment the sudden gust of wind sent a bouncy castle and an inflatable slide flying through the park.
Children could be heard screaming in the video as toilets were blown over and branches fell from trees at the Ashes Playing Fields.
Dad-of-two Tom revealed how he saw the bouncy castle fly straight past him and first thought he’s been hit by the inflatable.
“The bouncy castle flew straight past me. I heard people shouting as it went past,” he said.
“I thought that’s what had hit us at first, but it was the trailer and my daughter was on the floor screaming.”
Esmae sliced her knee open and has been left traumatised after being put on a stretcher and taken to hospital in an ambulance.
She was one of four people hospitalised following the freak weather at the event.
“My daughter landed head first on the floor. She also cut her knee and she can hardly walk today,” Tom said.
“She’s really shook up with it.
“Last night it was getting dark and windy again and she said: ‘Oh I want the winds to stop, I don’t like it’.
“She was complaining of a headache and tummy ache for most of the night.
“She’s barely spoken a word today. She just wants to sit with her favourite teddy all day.”
Just minutes before the storm hit, Tom had been enjoying the Picnic in the Park event with his dad, partner Jess Hollowell, their daughter and their 10-month-old son Preston.
The family, who live in neighbouring town Goole, had been relaxing in the sunshine at the Father’s Day picnic before the storm clouds suddenly approached.
“It was glorious sunshine, everyone was sat out in their t-shirts, drinking, eating and listening to a band,” Tom said.
“And then this cloud just appeared on the horizon and all of a sudden the rains just came down, probably the hardest rain I’ve ever witnessed.”
Thankfully it appears no kids were on the bouncy castle when the gust of wind hit.
Esmae had been playing on the bouncy castle just 30 minutes before it was blown away and into the trees.
“It could have been so much worse. Someone could have been badly hurt,” Tom said.
It comes three years after seven-year-old Summer Grant was killed when a bouncy castle blew away following a gust of wind at a funfair in Harlow, Essex.
Summer had been with her dad Lee Grant at the funfair when the tragedy unfolded in March 2016.
Fairground workers William and Shelby Thurston were jailed after being found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence over the death.
They had failed to secure the bouncy castle properly, allowing the wind to lift the inflatable and send it “cartwheeling” 300 metres down a hill.
The Ashes Playing Field Trust, which runs the annual community event, has praised the emergency services for their quick response.
In a statement, a spokesman for the trust said: “We would like to thank the emergency services and everyone who helped after the unexpected freak weather hit the Picnic In The Park event on Sunday.
“With emergency services on site throughout the event they were able to react quickly after the sudden tornado-like weather which damaged attractions and trees, blowing over a bouncy castle and an inflatable slide which thankfully had been quickly evacuated as soon as the heavy rain started so no one was on either.
“The members of the public who were present were also incredibly helpful and patient in helping us identify anyone who needed medical help and direct assistance their way.
“Their willingness to help shows the community spirit of this town at its best.”
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