A little girl lost her life after a go-kart allegedly malfunctioned, sending her crashing into a barrier.
Emma Riddle, aged six, suffered severe injuries at a Florida adventure park on Saturday, December 6.
The ‘sweet’ child, who had been celebrating her sister’s birthday, died from her injuries the next day after undergoing surgery.
In 911 audio from the scene of the crash, a distressed employee is heard saying Emma ‘hit her sternum really hard.’
‘I don’t know if she’s throwing up blood or if it’s coming from her nose, down her throat… but she keeps trying to throw up.’
Her family has hired lawyers to investigate what went wrong at Urban Air Adventure Park.
In a statement, the adventure park said it was ‘heartbroken’ by the tragedy and supporting investigations.
Emma was with her mum on a go-kart when the vehicle stopped responding to the pedals, according to the Daily Mail.
After an employee remotely activated the kart, it began accelerating and braking aggressively, according to a statement shared by law firm Morgan & Morgan.
It is alleged that the go-kart accelerated at ‘high speed’ without Emma’s mum pressing the accelerator and slammed into a track wall.
In a statement, attorney Thomas Hasty said the law firm wanted to ‘find out how this unimaginable tragedy happened and what could have been done to prevent it.’
‘Based on our initial investigation, we believe that there were mechanical failures in several go-karts that were on the track at the time of Emma’s crash.’
The family alleges that the go-kart had seatbelts but they did not work, Hasty added.
Emma’s obituary says she was ‘full of life, love, and light’ and touched every soul she met.
A GoFundMe page, set up in Emma’s memory, says: ‘Though her time with us was far too short, Emma filled every moment with laughter, compassion, and warmth.
‘She will forever remain a precious daughter, sister, friend, and a cherished gift from God.’
A memorial service was scheduled to be held at 10am local time at a chapel in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
In a statement, Urban Air Adventure Park said: ‘The safety and well-being of the children and families we serve will continue to be our highest priority. We are reiterating the importance of our safety policies and procedures to our team as we welcome guests back to the park.’
‘Words cannot express how devastated we are by this incident. We appreciate the efforts of the Port St. Lucie community to support the family and loved ones of the child, and we continue to offer our deepest sympathies.’
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