(HOUSTON) — More than a dozen teenagers from a church camp posing for a group photo were injured after a portion of a deck walkway collapsed at a seaside park in Texas, officials said.
The students were visiting Stahlman Park in Surfside Beach, Brazoria County, on Thursday with the Bayou City Fellowship when the incident occurred, the church said. Nearly 80 students from several campuses were on the trip, the church said.
Students from the Bayou City Fellowship’s Cypress campus were taking a group photo when a portion of the deck collapsed around 12:30 p.m. local time, according to the church.
Footage from the scene showed a section of a wooden walkway ramp that had partially detached, falling on the grass below.
Nineteen students between the ages of 14 and 18 suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the incident, according to Brazoria County officials. Five were transported to a Houston-area Memorial Hermann hospital via a helicopter, five were taken by ambulance to local hospitals, and nine were taken to hospitals by private vehicles, the county said.
Multiple police, EMS and fire departments responded to the scene.
“While this is a traumatic event, we are blessed to report that none of the injuries are life-threatening,” Bayou City Fellowship said in a statement. “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.”
The church said it is not releasing the names of the victims or the nature of their injuries due to privacy concerns.
The incident remains under investigation, the county said.
Stahlman Park is located on the Gulf of Mexico, about 66 miles south of Houston.
Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
