Woman who set up Hillcrest jumping castle not guilty following deaths of six primary school students in Tasmania | Tasmania

The operator of a jumping castle at the centre of an incident that killed six children has been cleared of breaching workplace safety laws.

Chace Harrison, Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones, Zane Mellor, Addison Stewart, Jye Sheehan and Peter Dodt died after the incident at Hillcrest primary school in Devonport in December 2021.

They were enjoying end-of-year celebrations on the Tasmanian school’s oval when a wind gust lifted the castle into the air. Three other children were seriously injured.

Rosemary Gamble, owner of Taz-Zorb which set up the equipment, pleaded not guilty to failing to comply with a workplace health and safety duty.

She was found not guilty by magistrate Robert Webster in Devonport magistrates court on Friday.

Webster didn’t read the full decision which was expected to be published online.

“I found the charge is not proven. It is dismissed. Ms Gamble you are free to go,” he said.

Gamble faced a 10-day hearing in November where it was alleged she only used pegs at four of the castle’s eight anchor points, despite the manufacturer’s instructions recommending eight.

Her lawyer, Chris Dockray, argued Gamble had been left out to dry by the castle’s Chinese manufacturer.

East Inflatables didn’t provide instructions to Gamble upon purchase and only supplied four pegs, Dockray told the court.

Gamble instead downloaded a two-page manual from the company’s website, he said, which resulted in an interpretation that four pegs were sufficient.

According to court documents, seven students were on the castle when a significant weather event dislodged it.

They fell from the castle, while a blower attached to the castle to keep it inflated struck a nearby student.

Preparations for an inquest had been paused due to the criminal proceedings, while a class action has also been launched against Gamble, as well as the state of Tasmania.