Although summer is winding down in the next few weeks, there is still plenty of time, particularly in a warmer climate like that of Louisiana, to enjoy the area’s pools and water parks. Water parks in particular offer an opportunity for people to have a lot of fun, as the slides, wave pools and other rides can be a real thrill for people of all ages.
However, these water parks can also cause a number of serious injuries, including traumatic and even fatal injuries. For instance, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, a federal agency, water slides were more likely even than roller coasters to cause injuries.
Overall, in 2015 alone, over 4,000 people went to the hospital for an injury suffered at a water park. While some of these injuries were for scrapes and cuts, other involved concussions, that is, traumatic brain injuries, and injuries to the spine.
Moreover, water parks always come with the risk of drowning or near-drowning. As this blog has discussed before, near-drownings can cause brain injuries due to oxygen deprivation. As with traumatic brain injuries, the resulting damage and changes one will have to make to his or her lifestyle can be profound. In the worst cases, a victim may require constant medical care.
Finally, some brain injuries have been connected to parasites that can fester in a water park, especially when proper sanitation techniques are not observed.
Someone who gets hurt at a water park or who has a loved one who has been injured may have legal options available to him or her.