A young girl has died after an incident involving a bouncy castle on a popular Norfolk beach, police have confirmed. They were called to Lower Esplanade at Gorleston-on-Sea at around 11.15am on Sunday following reports a child had been thrown from a bouncy castle. It is believed a lifeguard carried out CPR at the scene for around 15 minutes before paramedics arrived. The young girl was then taken to the James Paget Hospital in a “serious condition”, but she later died. Next of kin have been informed, and are being supported by specialist officers from Norfolk Constabulary. A joint investigation between the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), local authority, and police has been launched to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident. A police cordon has been set up at the scene while enquiries continue. The rest of the beach remains open to members of the public. The East of England Ambulance Service said: “We attended the incident this morning at Gorleston beach, involving a patient using inflatable equipment. “More than a dozen calls were received at just after 11am, and several people at the scene including the RNLI were providing assistance to the patient. “Several of our teams were dispatched, with the first on scene in four minutes. The young female was seriously injured and in cardiac arrest on our arrival, and was conveyed to James Paget Hospital. “Sadly, despite all of the efforts and interventions, she was pronounced deceased. “We would like to thank everyone who rushed to respond to the young patient, and did everything possible to give her treatment and care. Our thoughts are with the family at this time.” Brandon Lewis, Conservative MP for Great Yarmouth, joined those expressing their condolences. 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Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice The devastated family of a three-year-old girl who died after being thrown from an 'exploding' inflatable trampoline have paid emotional tribute to "the little girl that loved life". Bouquets of flowers and cuddly toys have been left for Ava-May Littleboy at the scene of the tragedy, which occurred yesterday morning at Gorleston Beach in Norfolk. According to some eyewitness accounts the inflatable exploded, flinging her '20ft into the air'. Her mum, Chloe Littleboy, 25, was with her at the time of the incident. Ava-May's family have tonight paid tribute to her, describing her smile as one that could light up any room. In a statement released by Norfolk Police, they said: "She was not your ordinary little girl, as anyone she met, she would leave a lasting impression on. "Anyone that met her would not want to forget her. "Her infectious laugh and smile could light up even the darkest of rooms. "She was the little girl that loved life." (Image: Facebook) (Image: SWNS- Cambridge) A fundraising page has been set up to raise money for a park bench for Ava-May. "On 1st July 2018, 3 year old Ava-May Littleboy tragically lost her life after a bouncy castle exploded on Gorleston beach, Norfolk," the page says. "Her family would like to kindly ask for donations to help fund a child's bench in memory of Ava that will be put in her local park of Somersham, Suffolk." Her aunt Laura Reid, 28, wrote on Facebook: “I will love you always and forever. Sleep tight my little angel. "My everything my princess ! Until I see you again my heart is broken xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx" Her aunt Abbie Littleboy, 21, added: “Me and our family would like to build a memorial bench for our little Ava. "Please take a read of our story and help raise money for our beautiful angel.” (Image: SWNS- Cambridge) (Image: PA) The youngster was the only person on the trampoline - also described as a type of 'bouncy castle' - at the time of the tragedy. The play area’s owner Curt Johnson, who was not at the scene, said it had exploded “because of the heat”. A lifeguard performed CPR on the youngster for 15 minutes after the incident on the beach. Norfolk Police said she later died from her injuries after the incident on the beach’s Lower Esplanade. Police revealed today the tot was on a day trip to the beach with her mother from Suffolk, but later died at the James Paget Hospital. (Image: Facebook) (Image: SWNS- Cambridge) (Image: SWNS- Cambridge) Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will auto-play soon 8 Cancel Play now An eyewitness who returned to the scene described seeing the young girl's mother screaming for help after watching her daughter get thrown from the trampoline. The 91-year-old man, who asked not to be named, said: "If you put two six-feet people on top of each other she still would have flown way above them. "She shot way up into the air- easily more than 20 feet and landed in the sand. "The mother ran up just screaming and crying for help. "The people acted together. One girl called the police and people were clearing the path." Kayla-Ann Weaver was sitting only metres away from the accident. She told MailOnline: "I cannot believe what I just witnessed on Gorleston beach. My thoughts are with the little girl's family. "I was right next to it the girls wanted to go on it, I said no." (Image: PA) (Image: SWNS.com) (Image: PA) The East of England Ambulance Service said it received more than a dozen calls just after 11am. A spokeswoman said: "The young female was seriously injured and in cardiac arrest on our arrival, and was conveyed to James Paget Hospital. Sadly, despite all of the efforts and interventions, she was pronounced deceased. "We would like to thank everyone who rushed to respond to the young patient, and did everything possible to give her treatment and care." A uniformed officer placed tributes brought to the scene behind police tape. One tribute read: "Taken too soon. Thinking of all your family. Such a sad loss. Sleep tight angel."<doc-sep>A girl has died after apparently being thrown from an inflatable trampoline on a beach, Norfolk police have said. The incident occurred at about 11am on Sunday at Gorleston beach. Members of the public and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution rushed to help the girl, who suffered serious injuries and was in cardiac arrest, East of England ambulance service (EEAST) said. She was taken to the James Paget hospital but died from her injuries. An EEAST spokeswoman said it received more than a dozen calls about the incident. “Several of our teams were dispatched, with the first on scene in four minutes. The young female was seriously injured and in cardiac arrest on our arrival, and was conveyed to James Paget hospital. “Sadly, despite all of the efforts and interventions, she was pronounced deceased. “We would like to thank everyone who rushed to respond to the young patient, and did everything possible to give her treatment and care. Our thoughts are with the family at this time.” Police said next of kin had been informed and were being supported by specialist officers. A woman who said she witnessed the incident wrote on Facebook that the victim was a four-year-old girl. Kara Longshaw said: “Just seen the most horrific thing in my life. A bouncy castle exploded at the beach and the child on it was catapulted about 20ft into the air. Please do not allow your children on a bouncy castle in this heat.” She said she was heartbroken to hear the girl had died. Images of the scene showed an area of the beach, with what appeared to be crumpled canvas and abandoned deck chairs, cordoned off by police. Uniformed officers stood beside the fenced-off area, but beyond the cordon visitors to the beach continued to bask in the sun. Police said they had launched a joint investigation with the Health and Safety Executive and local authority to establish the circumstances of the incident. Brandon Lewis, Conservative MP for Great Yarmouth, tweeted: “Absolutely tragic, thoughts are with family & friends, just so sad.” In May, two fairground workers were found guilty of the manslaughter by gross negligence of seven-year-old Summer Grant, from Norwich. She died after a bouncy castle blew away with her inside it in Harlow, Essex, in March 2016. In 2006, two women, Elizabeth Anne Collings, 68, and Claire Furmedge, 38, died and 27 people were injured when an inflatable artwork blew away in Chester-le-Street, County Durham. An inquest jury in May 2010 ruled that the deaths were accidental.<doc-sep>
A shrine has been set up where a girl, 3, died after being thrown from an 'exploding' bouncy castle. Bouquets of flowers and cuddly toys have been left next to the fencing which surround the scene of the tragedy, which occurred yesterday morning at Gorleston Beach in Norfolk. Norfolk Police have this afternoon confirmed the girl as being from the Suffolk area and aged 3. According to some eyewitness accounts the inflatable exploded, flinging the girl '20ft into the air'. The play area’s owner Curt Johnson, who was not at the scene, said the trampoline had exploded “because of the heat”. A lifeguard performed CPR on the youngster for 15 minutes after the incident on the beach at Gorleston-on-Sea, Norfolk, on Sunday morning. Did you see what happened? Email webnews@mirror.co.uk (Image: PA) (Image: BBC) (Image: ARCHANT\\KellyA2) Norfolk Police said she later died from her injuries after the tragedy on the beach’s Lower Esplanade. Mum Kayla-Ann Weaver was sitting only metres away from the accident. She told MailOnline: "I cannot believe what I just witnessed on Gorleston beach. Never ever will I let my girls on a bouncy castle ever. My thoughts are with the little girls family. "I was right next to it the girls wanted to go on it I said no. I was sat next to it behind the barrier and I just heard a big bang and I turn around and a little girl in pink flew up and back down. "They did CPR on her straight away. She looked a lot younger than four-years-old." (Image: ARCHANT\\KellyA2) An eyewitness who returned to the scene described seeing the young girl's mother screaming for help after watching her daughter get thrown from the trampoline. The 91-year-old man, who asked not to be named, said: "If you put two six-feet people on top of each other she still would have flown way above them. "She shot way up into the air- easily more than 20 feet and landed in the sand. "The mother ran up just screaming and crying for help. "The people acted together. One girl called the police and people were clearing the path. "The explosion was like a big gun. I was in the navy and I can tell you that it was an enormous bang." (Image: SWNS- Cambridge) Zoe Dye, 32, was just 20 metres away from the trampoline playing with her 11-year-old daughter Tiffany when the explosion occurred. She said: "Literally there were screams from everyone on the beach and it was almost like slow motion. "When the little girl was in the air no one could have done anything but people jumped up to try and catch her but she just dropped. "It was everyone's instinct just to try and catch her. "My little girl described what she saw as something from a horror film and she is very upset." (Image: SWNS- Cambridge) Officers were called to the scene at about 11.15am on Sunday, Norfolk Constabulary said. A Home Office post mortem examination is due to take place this afternoon to determine the cause of her death. Witness Sarah Allard told Sky News she heard a loud bang as the bouncy castle "exploded", throwing the girl in the air. The East of England Ambulance Service said it received more than a dozen calls just after 11am. A spokeswoman said: "The young female was seriously injured and in cardiac arrest on our arrival, and was conveyed to James Paget Hospital. Sadly, despite all of the efforts and interventions, she was pronounced deceased. "We would like to thank everyone who rushed to respond to the young patient, and did everything possible to give her treatment and care." (Image: PA) Images of the scene showed an area of the beach, with what appeared to be crumpled canvas and abandoned deck chairs, cordoned off by police. Uniformed officers stood guard by the fenced off area, while others in the background continued to enjoy the seafront on the sunny afternoon. Brandon Lewis, Conservative MP for Great Yarmouth, tweeted: "Absolutely tragic, thoughts are with family & friends, just so sad." A joint investigation between the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), local authority and police has been launched. (Image: SWNS- Cambridge) Robert Halfon, the Conservative MP for Harlow, Essex - where seven-year-old Summer Grant was killed when a bouncy castle blew free from its moorings in 2016 - wants politicians to consider a temporary ban.