Comment by Emilia Milcheva:
Carousels, jets and amusement facilities without control, institutions without responsibility - and in the end the price is paid with a child's life. The 8-year-old boy who died while parasailing in the sea near Nessebar illuminated one of the dark corners of Bulgarian tourism, where it turned out that inspectors do not set foot. The reason - legislative omissions, well known to the industry.
And this is not the first incident
Whether they were done intentionally or are the result of the work of incompetent legislators, it does not matter after a child loses his life. In the media, representatives of the tourism industry explain that this case is the first such incident in Bulgaria. But in fact, it is not. In the summer of 2019, two girls fell onto a tree, and from there onto the roof of a restaurant, also while parasailing due to a problem with the boat. And due to a broken lifting rope during the same entertainment, 6 years ago, tourists fell onto a tree in an area near “Kavatsite”. These cases are also accompanied by accidents with paragliders and parachutes.
The people injured in them escaped with minor injuries, while little Ivan did not have this chance. Also the parachutist who died while jumping from a hot air balloon near Blagoevgrad.
How is parasailing regulated in Bulgaria - through the Regulation on Navigation and Border Regime in Internal Sea Waters, Territorial Sea and Inland Waterways. It introduces a short set of requirements – sailing area, two-seater parachutes, rope up to 80 meters, etc. There are no age restrictions, on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, parasailing can be enjoyed by children over 3 years old, but it is also the case in Croatia, in Cyprus it is offered to both 2-year-olds and 90-year-olds. But in Spain, for example, the minimum age for children is 10 years old.
Some useless laws…
But parachuting from a boat is just one of the activities in the “gray zone” of entertainment. A year ago, the director of the Executive Agency “Bulgarian Accreditation Service” Eng. Irena Borislavova told BTA that Bulgaria does not have accredited control bodies that have the right to carry out technical inspections of the facilities in amusement facilities - Ferris wheels, roller coasters, etc. There is supposedly a legal requirement to have a “control person” who checks and certifies the safety of the attraction, performs periodic technical inspections and documents the results. However, his accreditation is not mandatory.
The “control person” of the facilities in the amusement facilities is introduced by the Law on Technical Requirements for Products (LTRP) and the Regulation on the Safe Operation of Amusement Facilities. And since there is no accreditation, this person can be anyone.
Instead of explaining why there is no control, since there are laws, the Minister of Tourism Miroslav Borshosh states that “at this stage there is no institution that can bear responsibility and exercise control functions with regard to extreme attractions”.
Control "piecemeal"
According to Art. 56, para. 6 of the Spatial Planning Act (SPA), “the conditions and procedure for the design, safety and technical requirements for the facilities placed in entertainment facilities shall be determined by an ordinance of the Minister of Regional Development and Public Works, the Minister of Interior and the Minister of Youth and Sports”. Such an ordinance has been in place since 2013 - except that it excludes “circuses, fixed stands, installations for construction sites, construction scaffolding, demountable agricultural structures, water facilities and slides, aquaparks, water attractions, attraction and theme parks, go-karts of a competitive nature, as well as coin-operated amusement facilities used simultaneously by no more than three persons, the use of which is regulated in special laws and in the by-laws for their implementation”.
In practice, nothing is regulated. Control over aquaparks and water attractions in Bulgaria is “piecemeal” - several institutions have partial powers, but there is no single body that bears full responsibility and consumers can be assured that the safety of the facilities is systematically checked. When was the last time - and if so - the State Agency for Metrological and Technical Supervision checked, for example, water slides? And has the hyperactive Consumer Protection Commission shown any interest in whether these services are safe, as it is taking action against retail chains?
For a Red Belt
In television footage, everyone saw the worn and frayed red belt with which the 8-year-old child was secured. On social networks, some are asking whether, even if there had been control, it would still not have happened - given the corruption in Bulgaria and the total impunity. Didn't elevators fall in buildings that were supposedly regularly inspected? Didn't children drown in hotel pools where there were no lifeguards - even though owners are obliged to appoint such for certain sizes of swimming facilities. According to the Minister of Tourism, “a conversation about the control of the facilities is coming”. Whether it will lead to closing the legislative loopholes is not certain. By September, the deputies can conveniently forget about the case, unless some people's conscience speaks.
No licensing is required for the parasailing service (offered at prices of 140-200 leva), nor for hang gliding, paragliding and other air sports. The only requirement is that the boat has passed a technical inspection and is registered with the Executive Agency “Maritime Administration”. There is a regulation for the crew and equipment of the vessel, if there are clients under 18 - with a signed declaration from a parent/guardian, as well as mandatory life jackets for parachutists. And if the attraction “Water sled” requires insurance on the seats, there is no such condition for parasailing.
The tragedy in Nessebar blackened the family from Razlog, but it could have been any other. With such a lack of control, the attractions are like Russian roulette, in which the state itself loads the gun with irresponsibility and inaction.