Girl, 7, steps on thumbtack at Kiztopia Marina Square, mum says playground's response 'heartless & dismissive'

A seven-year-old girl allegedly stepped on a thumbtack while attending a classmate’s birthday party at Kiztopia Marina Square, an indoor playground in Singapore.

Her mother told Mothership that the playground’s response to the incident was “heartless and dismissive”.

Injured while playing

The mother, Jiao, said she had dropped off her daughter at the party at about 10am on Jan. 31.

About 30 minutes later, she was informed that her daughter had been injured, and she rushed back to the venue.

According to a video taken by the mother of a classmate at the playground, the children were jumping and playing in the activity room when the girl suddenly stopped.

She lifted her foot to check her sole and then sat down at the side, remaining still.

The classmate’s mother helped her remove her sock and discovered that she had stepped on a sharp object.

She used tissue paper to stem the bleeding.

Photos of the sock showed that it was soaked with blood.

Thumbtack found on the ground

Upon returning to the playground, Jiao used iodine to clean her daughter’s wound.

Jiao then asked another employee about the next course of action, but was instead asked whether she had signed a waiver.

“When we sought help, the staff’s first response was terrible and dismissive: 'Did you sign the waiver?' and 'I don’t know what I can do',” she said.

"After the injury, not a single staff member offered any antiseptic, bandage, or basic first aid. We had to tend to our bleeding child ourselves," she added.

Jiao added that another employee later explained that a thumbtack used to secure decorations might have fallen onto the ground, causing her daughter to step on it.

He subsequently found a thumbtack on the floor.

Unsatisfactory solutions

Jiao said a senior staff member later offered two solutions.

One was to give the girl free ice cream, while the other was to allow her an additional three hours of free play.

“This made me feel that they wanted to downplay the matter and did not seriously examine its severity,” she said.

Jiao described the proposed solutions as “unsatisfactory”, adding that the playground failed to ensure the safety of its premises and lacked the ability to respond appropriately to emergencies.

Playground investigating matter

The playground told Chinese daily Shin Min Daily News that it has launched an internal investigation and will contact the parents involved.

A manager from the outlet told Shin Min that they are reviewing CCTV footage, but declined to disclose further details as investigations are still ongoing.

She added that staff had inspected the playground before it opened on Feb. 1 to ensure there were no sharp objects on the ground.

No similar incidents have since been reported, she said.

Top photos from Jiao