TULALIP – Steve Martini said it was the weight of too many kids that caused a large, inflatable slide to collapse on Friday at the Tulalip Casino, injuring his three children.
“It tipped over, sending all the kids to the pavement,” Martini said Saturday.
Martini, of Marysville, said one of his daughters, 14, could not be X-rayed because she is pregnant. He said he believes she has a broken arm. His other daughter, 15, suffered a broken rib, and his son, 10, tore cartilage in his knee, he said.
Seven people were hospitalized with minor injuries when the slide collapsed Friday while kids were playing on it, officials said. Two other people refused treatment, including one adult, they said.
The incident occurred at a carnival to mark a family appreciation day for casino employees and their families, Martini said. His wife works at the casino.
“It was the size of a house,” Martini said, describing the slide as 25 to 30 feet tall.
Nine people were involved in the spill, which occurred shortly before 8 p.m. Friday, said Nathan Trauenicht, spokesman for Snohomish County Fire District 12.
Five of those treated were taken to the of Providence Everett Medical Center’s Colby campus, and the other two were taken to Providence’s Pacific campus.
Five aid cars, a medic car, two engine companies, and ladder companies from four fire districts responded to the incident, which first came over the radio as a “mass casualty,” Trauernicht said.
The carnival was set up by an independent company, said Trent Galusha, a security officer at the casino.
The incident is still under investigation, a Tulalip tribal police officer said.
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