Horizontal Falls accident: Tourists injured in Kimberley boating incident land in Perth

At least 12 tourists injured at Kimberley’s famous Horizontal Falls after a sight-seeing trip went horribly wrong have been flown into Perth before being taken to Royal Perth Hospital for treatment. The most seriously injured were flown to Perth with the first patients being flown on three Royal Flying Doctor Services flights arriving just after 8pm on Friday. Two men walked out the plane, one with a bandage on his head and around his legs, while three women were ferried off on stretches. The women were loaded into a large ambulance which is believed to have been used to transport COVID patients from infected cruise ships during the pandemic. It is understood none of those injured have life-threatening injuries. Another five patients were flown into Perth about 10pm and another two arrived early on Saturday. The Falls Express, operated by Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures, was conducting a tour of the natural wonder in Talbot Bay, about 250km north-east of Broome, when it ran into trouble with 26 passengers and two crew on board about 7am on Friday. The hazardous attraction, popular with thrill-seekers, features two narrow, sheer rock gorges on the bay which transform into rapids when water is forced through them with the changing tides. WA Police Regional WA Commander Brad Sorrell said while the circumstances leading up to the incident were still under investigation, several people had been thrown into the water. The age-range of the injured was unknown on Friday night, however, there were no children involved. It is understood several patients have serious, but not life-threatening, injuries. In a statement on Friday, tour operator Horizontal Falls Seaplane Adventures said Falls Express was guided by an experienced skipper when the vessel came into trouble while travelling through the falls. “The vessel immediately returned to the pontoon,” the statement said. “(We) are continuing to liaise with the RFDS and emergency services to manage the incident.” Horizontal Falls attracts tourists from all over the world, with its swift tidal currents squeezing between two narrow gorges in what Sir David Attenborough once labelled “one of the greatest natural wonders of the world”. The iconic falls, known for their fast-moving tides, play host to frequent jet boat tours.