A coronial inquest into the deaths of six children from the Hillcrest Primary School tragedy began in Devonport, Tasmania. The incident occurred on December 16, 2021, when a jumping castle was blown by strong winds across the school oval. During the first day of the four-day inquest, counsel assisting the coroner detailed the lives and personalities of each child who died, including Peter Dodt, Chace Harrison, Jalailah "JJ" Jones, Zane Mellor, Jye Sheehan, and Addison Stewart. The court heard about their interests, achievements, and the impact they had on others at Hillcrest Primary School.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-21,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
A coronial inquest began on December 5, 2023, in Devonport, Tasmania, into the deaths of six children who died and three others who were seriously injured when a freak wind gust tossed a jumping castle across the school oval at Hillcrest Primary School during an end-of-year celebration on December 16, 2021. The tragedy involved students Addison Stewart, Chace Harrison, Jye Sheehan, Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones, Peter Dodt, and Zane Mellor. The inquest, before Coroner Olivia McTaggart, is expected to run for four days this week, with further sessions set for November and February.
The court heard details about the chaotic scene from first responders like Constable Dean Wotherspoon, who described it as an "organised chaos" where police officers, school staff, paramedics, and others were doing everything possible to save the children. Assistant Commissioner Adrian Bodnar, who also attended the Port Arthur shooting massacre in 1996, shared that reviewing body-worn footage from the jumping castle incident brought back traumatic memories of that event.
The tragedy led to protocol changes at hospitals, including Tasmania's Mersey Community Hospital (MCH), where some of the impacted children remained unidentified for hours. Meteorological experts classified the wind gust as a dust devil with "enormous force" unlikely to be predicted accurately in Tasmania. The inquest will examine whether rules governing inflatable amusement devices need to be tightened to prevent similar tragedies from occurring again.
Written for “Hillcrest Jumping Castle Tragedy” on 2026-10-06,
grounded in this article and the 4 other(s) covering the same event.
In short:
A coronial inquest into the deaths of six children in the Hillcrest Primary School tragedy has started in Devonport in Tasmania's north-west.
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inquest → start → west
At the outset of the inquest, the coroner's court heard details of each of the children who died.
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who → hear → children
The inquest is expected to run for four days this week, before resuming in November and February.
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inquest → expect → November
For the first time in court, the lives and personalities of the children who died in the Hillcrest Primary School tragedy in Tasmania's north-west have been described in detail.
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who → die → detail
The coronial inquest into the deaths of the six children who died when a freak wind tossed a jumping castle across the school's oval on December 16, 2021, started today in Devonport.
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wind → die → Devonport
The children who died were Addison Stewart, Chace Harrison, Jye Sheehan, Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones, Peter Dodt and Zane Mellor.
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who → die → ?
The inquest is scheduled to run for four days this week, before further hearing blocks in November and February.
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inquest → schedule → November
At the outset of the inquest, counsel assisting the coroner, Maree Norton SC, detailed how the tragedy occurred and how the coronial inquest is expected to proceed.
She also described each of the children who died while photographs of them were displayed on large screens around the courtroom.
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photographs → assist → courtroom
Victims given life in opening address
Each of the children were in grades 5 or 6 at Hillcrest Primary School in Devonport on the day of the tragedy.
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Ms Norton began by describing Peter Dodt, who was 12 and in grade 6 when he died.
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he → begin → grade
She said Peter had nine siblings and had seen a significant improvement in his school grades since he started attending Hillcrest Primary School, of which his father Andrew was particularly proud.
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father → say → which
Andrew Dodt arrived at the inquest this morning wearing a photo bearing his son's photo and the words "Dad's Little Super Hero".
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Dodt → arrive → photo
Chace Harrison was 11 and in grade 5 on the day of the tragedy, and at school he particularly loved sport.
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he → love → sport
"He was worldly, and often conducted his own research into topics he found interesting," Ms Norton said.
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Norton → conduct → topics
Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones, known as JJ, was 12 and in grade 6 when she died.
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she → know → grade
"She was loyal, kind, caring and full of life,"Ms Norton said.
"
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Norton → say → ?
She had a laugh that was loud and contagious … and dreamed of becoming a childcare worker."
Zane Mellor, also 12 years old and in grade 6, was a "witty and cheeky" boy with a "zest for adventure", Ms Norton said.
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Norton → have → adventure
He had a "creative and boundless energy" and had a "knack for technology".
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He → have → technology
Like Mr Dodt, Zane's mother, Georgie Burt carried a cushion on which her son's face had been printed.
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face → carry → which
Jye Sheehan was 12 years old and in grade 6, and enjoyed school and being with his friends, and "never stopped talking".
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Sheehan → enjoy → friends
He enjoyed mathematics, was a sports leader and a member of the school choir, Ms Norton said, and a mentor for younger students.
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Norton → enjoy → students
Addison Stewart was 11 years old and in grade 5 on the day of the tragedy, the court heard.
"
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court → hear → tragedy
She enjoyed all aspects of school life," Ms Norton said.
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Norton → enjoy → life
"She was often the first to person to offer help when asked."
As Ms Norton spoke, many of the victims' family members could be seen becoming emotional and embracing.
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many → offer → members
Victim's mother not allowed to see son's body until three days after tragedy
Ms Burt, Zane's mother, was the first person to give evidence in the hearing on Monday morning.
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Burt → allow → morning
She described the chaos at the school on the morning of the tragedy as she ran around the grounds trying to find her son, or someone who could tell her what had happened.
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what → describe → her
Ms Burt said she was told he had been taken to the Mersey Community Hospital at Latrobe, and while she was there, she was told by police he had died but had not left the school grounds.
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he → say → grounds
She said she was not allowed to see him or view his body until three days later at the funeral home.
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she → say → home
"I felt like someone had ripped my heart out whole,"she said.
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someone → feel → heart
"What do you mean Zane's dead?
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Zane → mean → What
She said she was never personally contacted by staff from the school, and only heard from staff in the Department of Education, Children and Young People in the following year.
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she → say → year
At one point, when Ms Burt appeared distressed, Coroner McTaggart asked if she would like a break, but she declined, saying, "This is what it is.
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it → appear → break
This is what every one of our families dealt with that day."
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one → deal → families
The court has not heard any indication that any other victims' family members are expected to give evidence.
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members → hear → evidence
Inquest starts as fifth anniversary of the tragedy approaches
The coronial inquest started as the fifth anniversary of the tragedy approaches on December 16.
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anniversary → start → December
It follows the criminal case hearing, which in June last year resulted in Magistrate Robert Webster finding Rosemary Gamble not guilty of failing in her work health and safety duty over the tragedy.
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Gamble → follow → tragedy
Ms Gamble owned the jumping castle and Taz-Zorb, the business that rented the inflatable amusement equipment to the primary school on the day of the tragedy.
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that → own → tragedy
In her hour-long opening address to the court, Ms Norton detailed the circumstances of the tragedy, including the weather conditions on the morning beforehand.
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Norton → detail → morning
She discussed how, despite the mild weather, witnesses had described the "mini-tornado" that swept through the primary school grounds, lifting the jumping castle into the air and across the school oval.
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that → discuss → oval
Much of what she discussed was heard in detail during the two-week criminal hearing in 2024, but Ms Norton said the aims of the inquest were different.
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aims → discuss → inquest
…and 7 more, not listed.
The Aporia