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Teen's frightening fall from indoor climbing wall caught on camera

Posted at 5:53 PM, Jul 31, 2017
and last updated 2017-07-31 20:53:34-04

A play place employee falls from the top of a climbing wall, and the frightening incident is caught on their cameras.

Kolin Oliver was working at Flip N Out Xtreme near Flamingo and 215 last week when Oliver's boss says a customer baited him into a climbing race.

The 16-year-old Oliver took off up the wall without strapping into the safety mechanism, then fell when he reached the top.

Employees say Oliver broke his wrist.

"He knows he made a mistake," Scott Horlacher, Flip N Out's general manager said. "[He] got caught up in the moment."

Horlacher says there's always at least one employee monitoring the climbing walls, so he doesn't believe a child who's a customer could ever fall like Oliver did.

"When they come in, they're not allowed in until they have a harness on, and once they have a harness on, they have to be clipped in," Horlacher said.

A list of rules are posted, and Horlacher also points out that the belays climbers clip into are certified annually with the manufacturer for safety.

"With the number of kids that we have come through the whole facility, the number of injuries is very minimal," Horlacher said. "It really is a safe environment."

Employees say Oliver hasn't returned to work yet.

Horlacher says he's comfortable returning the teen to work the climbing walls.