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It's been almost five years since Georgie Burt lost her son Zane Mellor in the Hillcrest Primary School jumping castle tragedy.
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Burt → see → tragedy
She hopes a long-awaited inquest, which wrapped up its first week of hearings in Tasmania on Friday, can lead to long-lasting safety changes.
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which → hop → changes
Zane was with classmates celebrating the end of the school year on December 16, 2021, when a freak 'mini-tornado' lifted the castle and other inflatable equipment into the air.
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tornado → celebrate → air
The 12-year-old fell from the castle, which went 16m into the air on the oval and landed 60m away.
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which → fall → oval
Addison Stewart, Chace Harrison, Jye Sheehan, Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones and Peter Dodt, all in grade 5 or 6, were also killed.
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Stewart → kill → grade
Three other children were badly injured.
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children → injure → ?
The inquest has been told of frantic efforts by paramedics, police officers and hospital staff to try to save the children and the chaos and confusion of the scene.
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inquest → tell → scene
Ms Burt told the inquest she raced to the school and was unable to find Zane.
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she → tell → Zane
Zane Mellor's mother, Georgie Burt (centre), attended the inquest into the jumping castle tragedy that took his life
Six children died in the Hillcrest Primary School (above) jumping castle tragedy on December 16, 2021, when a freak 'mini-tornado' lifted the castle into the air
She was told he had been taken to the nearby Mersey Community Hospital.
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he → attend → Hospital
After arriving there, she was informed Zane had died but she was unable to see him because his body was being transported elsewhere.
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body → arrive → him
Ms Burt said she later found out Zane had died on the school's oval.
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Zane → say → oval
She wasn't able to see his body until three days after the event at a funeral home, she said.
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she → see → home
Tasmania Police assistant commissioner Adrian Bodnar on Friday apologised to Ms Burt for the fact she wasn't allowed onto the school oval when families of other victims were.
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families → apologise → victims
Veteran constable and lead forensic investigator Dean Wotherspoon also admitted police 'could have done better.'
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police → admit → ?
The inquest will examine a range of issues, including the castle's set-up by operator Taz-Zorb, relevant national safety standards and whether there were education department shortcomings.
'
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inquest → examine → Zorb
I don't think there will ever be a complete amount of closure when it comes to losing our children,' Ms Burt said after the first hearing day.
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Burt → think → day
Pictured left to right: 12-year-old Zane Mellor, 12-year-old Peter Dodt, 11-year-old Addison Stewart, 12-year-old Jye Sheehan, 12-year-old Jalailah Jayne-Marie Jones and 11-year-old Chace Harrison
Taz-Zorb's operator Rosemary Gamble was accused of criminal workplace safety breaches and found not guilty in 2025.
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operator → picture → 2025
The magistrate ruled Ms Gamble could have taken further steps regarding the castle's anchorage but even if she had, it would not have changed the outcome.
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it → rule → outcome
It was ruled the 'dust devil' wind event was impossible to predict.
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event → rule → ?
Recent jumping castle accidents elsewhere in Australia were further proof improved standards were needed, Ms Burt said.
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Burt → jump → Australia
In early September, five children were taken to hospital after jumping castles were picked up by winds in separate incidents on the same day in Victoria and NSW.
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castles → take → Victoria
'I hope for better protocols.
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I → hope → protocols
I hope for law change.
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I → hope → change
I hope people can have a really good look,' Ms Burt said.
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Burt → hope → look
Zane was remembered at the inquest as witty and cheeky, with a zest for adventure and love for video games.
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Zane → remember → games
The coroner is assessing a request from families' lawyers to make school staff give evidence at the inquest.
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staff → assess → inquest
'Families are desperate for information and this might be their last chance,' their lawyer Peter Hamilton said.
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lawyer → say → information
Jumping castle operator Rosemary Gamble (above) was accused of criminal workplace safety breaches and found not guilty in 2025
'
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operator → jump → 2025
They felt shut out on the day and at the hospital.
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They → shut → hospital
They then felt shut out from getting much-needed answers from the school.
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They → shut → school
'
Greta Chen, lawyer representing the state, said some of the staff in question had post-traumatic stress disorder and had answered questions sufficiently via statements.
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some → represent → statements
Police evidence indicates the castle was held down with pegs at four of its eight anchorage points, while a Zorb ball barrier was held down with pegs at six of 32 points.
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barrier → indicate → points
The inquest was shown pegs and star pickets in the back of a Taz-Zorb trailer at the school, which Const Wotherspoon said were 'readily available' for use.
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Wotherspoon → show → use
Const Wotherspoon said in his professional opinion, which included decades of search-and-rescue operations, the castle was insufficiently tethered.
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castle → say → operations
Tasmanian Health Service executive Paula Hyland told the inquest issues in identifying the children had hampered the information flow to parents.
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issues → tell → parents
However, it did not affect the care they received, she said.
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she → affect → care
More than 40 paramedics and aeromedical staff responded, with Ambulance Tasmania boss Nicole Ashworth indicating nothing more could have been done to change the outcome.
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nothing → respond → outcome
Ms Burt hoped the tragedy that took her son's life would lead to long-lasting safety changes (pictured are flowers left outside the school)
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flowers → hop → school
State forensic pathologist Andrew Reid said he didn't believe any different medical or surgical interventions could have saved the children.
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interventions → say → children
The coroner has evidence from witnesses who say the weather was calm and virtually windless on the morning of the tragedy.
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weather → have → tragedy
…and 7 more, not listed.
The Aporia
