A FIVE-year-old girl ended up in the water at a Dorset theme park when a damaged hand rail gave way.

Ellie-May Milligan slipped underneath a boat on Adventure Wonderland’s new Battle Boats ride, according to her mum.

Sarah Milligan told how she grabbed her little girl and pulled her to safety on Sunday afternoon.

She said Ellie-May was enjoying her fifth birthday party with friends when the accident happened.

“I got into the boat first and I was going to help her in” said Sarah. “She held on to a safety rail but it moved because the wood underneath it had split and she fell in.

“The attendant was just watching the situation, then he said we should have waited. I reported it but they didn’t close the ride.”

Sarah, who lives at Mudeford, added: “I went back the following morning and I was offered a season ticket but Ellie-May won’t want to go there again. She had been crying through the night and she didn’t even want to have a bath on Sunday night because she didn’t want to go back into the water.”

A spokesman for Adventure Wonderland said: “We are aware of a five-year-old child slipping into a 3ft pool of water at 4.30pm on Sunday July 21.

“The child was immediately pulled from the water by her mother although the pool supervisor was present. No first aid was required.

“We understand that due to heavy use that day it may have been due to a loosened plank which was securing the tethering rail.

“As with all rides at Adventure Wonderland, full checks were carried out that morning and no faults were identified.

“All the tethering rails however have been strengthened to ensure that this incident cannot recur.”

Several children were injured at Adventure Wonderland in May when Wild Bill’s Runaway Train came to a sudden halt, throwing people forward. Read the story here.

Children were seen with bleeding wounds and one youngster was taken to Poole Hospital.

Inquiries revealed “an over-sensitive braking system” and an investigation is being carried out by Christchurch council and the Health and Safety Executive.

The incident came nearly a year after a cable snapped on the PollyDrop ride, injuring a woman and two children.

Paramedics were called to deal with a back injury and shock.