SURFSIDE BEACH, Texas – Officials said 19 summer campers were injured when a deck collapsed at Stahlman Park in Surfside Beach Thursday afternoon.
The incident happened around 1 p.m. at 2211 Bluewater Highway.
Brazoria County PIO Sharon Trower issued a statement saying that five people were flown to Memorial Hermann in Houston, six were taken to area hospitals by ambulance and 10 were taken to hospitals via private vehicle. They said all of the injured people were between 14 and 18, and none of them sustained life-threatening injuries.
Trower said 78 teens were visiting Surfside Beach with the Bayou City Fellowship Summer Camp when the deck collapsed while they were trying to take a group photo.
Sky 2 was over the incident, which showed part of a walkway deck collapsed and taped off. It’s not clear how the walkway collapsed, but parts of it were still intact.
The Bayou City Fellowship Summer Camp released the following statement regarding the incident:
“78 Students were visiting Surfside for an annual church camp from Bayou City Fellowship. At approximately 12:30 p.m. today, a portion of a deck collapsed at Stahlman Park while students from our Cypress campus took a group picture. There were several injuries. Five were life-flighted to Memorial Hermann. Nine were taken by ambulance to St. Luke’s Lake Jackson. Five were driven to St. Luke’s for precautionary measures. While this is a traumatic event, we are blessed to report that none of the injuries are life-threatening. We are thankful for the outpour of concern from our community and ask that the city and surrounding areas keep all that are affected physically and emotionally in prayer. For privacy reasons, we aren’t commenting on particular injuries or releasing the names of any involved. Thank you.”