Dad of the year? Girl in China falls through gap of suspension bridge after father's antics

Even parents are allowed a little fun sometimes, but at what expense?

One dad in China got the internet all riled up after his overly aggressive play took a potentially deadly turn, when his daughter fell through the gap of a suspension bridge.

In a clip of the mishap which went viral on Douyin and Weibo this week, the girl could be seen hanging on for dear life to the sides of the wooden bridge as a man, presumably her father, violently rocked it.

A split second later, the child lost her grip and was flung backwards, disappearing through the wooden slats at the bottom of the bridge.

According to Chinese reports, the incident reportedly occurred on Wednesday (Oct 5) in Guang'an district located in Sichuan province.

Fortunately, the girl survived — thanks to the netting that was attached to the bottom of the bridge.

The child could be seen completing the rest of the journey tearfully as the father (gingerly, we might add), walked beside her.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEXCsg5fz4E[/embed]

While it could be said that the father might have been aware of the safety net before he proceeded with the dangerous play, netizens were not convinced. 

Online comments from the angry public targeted the father for his "gross negligence".

Wrote one netizen, as reported in 8World: "The girl's face was frozen with fear but the father still carried on happily. Luckily, there's a net below otherwise no amount of tears can make up for the regret! Did you even think of the trauma that this would inflict on the child?"

Others commented that there's simply no excuse for it being "an accident" and the blame fell squarely on the father.

Another netizen wrote: "It wasn't a careless mistake, he did it on purpose. The girl was crying and he was still laughing and shaking the bridge in evil fashion. It's as if he was delighting in the girl's fear."

One netizen made an observation that if it was the mother who had done this to her child, she "would have been blamed to no end".

The incident even prompted Chinese authorities to issue an advisory on Weibo, warning parents to be mindful of their children's safety.

candicecai@asiaone.com