Santa slammed, shoppers hurt in crush for mall freebies
Several shoppers were injured when a crowd struggled to catch prizes inside an Australian shopping mall.
Balloons containing vouchers for trivial gifts, such as free coffee and parking, were released Tuesday above a crowd of about 150 people at the Westfield Parramatta shopping center in Sydney, reports news.com.au.
Video shows the mass of shoppers surge toward the scattering balloons. Notice the Santa Claus actor sent flying when a wooden sign slams into him.
Lauren Borg was caught in the crush at Westfield Parramatta and told the Daily Mail she won a free coffee, a day of valet parking and a $5 coupon.
“It was horrible,” she said. “Everyone was pushing and falling all over each other.”
“Just before the drop they released the barrier and people went nuts shoving and pushing,” Borg told the Mail. “Then everyone fell like dominos. My shopping got damaged.”
The event was a little more subdued back in 2016:
Steven Adams is a Tribune-Review manager/photography. You can contact Steven at sadams@triblive.com.
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