Unsafe entertainment venues

Not wearing protective gear during dangerous games can easily lead to accidents. In the photo: Adults subjectively do not wear life jackets when kayaking at Dung's shop (Kinh Mon)

The case of a 7-year-old girl in Quang Minh commune (Gia Loc) drowning while rowing a swan boat in Bach Dang lake ( Hai Duong city) on April 16 is a wake-up call about safety at current entertainment venues.

Void from consciousness

Witnessing the scene of the swan boat capsized on Bach Dang Lake on the morning of April 16, Ms. Nguyen Thi Nga in Tran Phu Ward (Hai Duong City) was still shocked and felt that her family was very lucky. Ms. Nga said that on the same morning, she and her two children bought tickets to row the swan boat and subjectively did not wear life jackets. Many swan boats on Bach Dang Lake are old and poorly maintained. "Children are active and do not like wearing life jackets, so I indulged my children and did not force them to wear them. Luckily, no accident happened," Ms. Nga said, still worried.

Not only the swan boating service in Bach Dang Lake, at Chi Lang Nam Stork Island (Thanh Mien), many people also do not pay attention to wearing life jackets when boating. Even when going boating to sightsee, even though the boat owners remind them, they just put it on as a response, not fastening the life jacket straps. Many people are afraid to wear life jackets because it is hot and does not take good pictures, so they only use them for a while and then take them off. The boat drivers also do not remind them strongly, so the situation of having life jackets but not wearing them is quite common here. In September 2022, at Stork Island, a swan boat carrying 3 tourists without life jackets was moving in the middle of the lake when it capsized. Fortunately, these people clung to a nearby swan boat and escaped.

At some entertainment venues in Hai Duong, ensuring safety for players is not taken seriously. Many families bring their children to the Provincial Children's House to buy tickets but do not pay attention and do not fasten seat belts for their children. Because there are too many visitors, the managers of the entertainment venues do not check or remind them closely. Mr. Nguyen Van Tu in Lai Cach town (Cam Giang) brought his children to the Hai Duong Children's House to play on the afternoon of April 16. He said that because they were not warned and no one reminded them, the children were so active that they climbed on the roller coaster without fastening seat belts. Some of the seat belts here were also broken and have not been replaced. Some young children played quite dangerous games such as roller coasters and bumper cars without an adult accompanying them. At some entertainment venues, there were no safety supervisors while many parents were busy watching their phones while their children played.

Not only in Hai Duong City, but also in many places in the province recently, spontaneous entertainment spots have appeared. Many entertainment spots have old and dilapidated equipment. Games such as trams, merry-go-rounds, and electric cars often appear quite a lot at festivals or local events but are not controlled or assessed for safety before being put into operation.

Obviously, the issue of safety management at entertainment venues in many places is currently being neglected by both organizers and visitors.

Regular game inspections are essential to ensure children's safety.

Don't wait until the cow is gone to build the barn.

According to the owner of a children's entertainment and recreation facility in Gia Loc town, the equipment here is only evaluated and inspected once upon installation, and the rest is almost never checked or assessed for safety periodically. Although some of the playground equipment at the Provincial Children's House has been gradually replaced, according to some people in charge of the games here, there are no conditions for periodic inspection and no competent authority has requested inspection or assessment of safety after being put into use.

This can easily lead to unsafety risks at entertainment venues. Especially after a long period of closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic, entertainment equipment may have been worn out and damaged if not inspected, tested and assessed for safety, easily causing unfortunate accidents for children.

Circular 05/2014/TT-BLDTBXH dated March 6, 2014 of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, effective from May 2014, clearly stipulates that games that carry people to a height of 2 m or more, with a moving speed of 3 m/s compared to a fixed floor (such as roller coasters, merry-go-rounds, and slides) are in the list of machinery, equipment, and materials with strict requirements on labor safety, and must be inspected and tested to ensure safety before being put into use.

According to this regulation, indoor and outdoor play equipment must be inspected periodically once a year. In addition, there are evaluation and inspection periods according to the manufacturer's recommendations. In reality, many entertainment venues do not comply with periodic inspections according to regulations. Inspection and evaluation work by competent authorities is also not carried out regularly.

Amusement and recreation venues currently attract a lot of children. It is necessary to inspect equipment to ensure the safety of players. Amusement venues need to have warning signs and specific regulations for each age group, and have supervisors, rescuers, and lifeguards when children participate in risky games.

The April 30 and May 1 holidays as well as summer are approaching, the need for entertainment and recreation of children will increase sharply. Therefore, in addition to raising awareness of compliance with safety regulations when playing, it is necessary for the authorities to participate in assessing and evaluating the safety level of games, not to let the unfortunate incident at Bach Dang Lake happen again.

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