New Bedford Won’t Have an Inflatable Water Park This Summer

There will be no inflatable water park in New Bedford for the Summer of 2022, WBSM has confirmed.

According to the City of New Bedford’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Beaches, there will be no inflatable water park this summer in the city, and it is unknown if one will return in the future.

It was one year ago today that we broke the news that the water park would return to East Beach after missing the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, unlike in 2019 when it was run by Altitude H20, the 2021 version of the park was operated by WhoaZone, which came in offering inflatable fun at slightly more affordable prices than its predecessor.

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The water park opened on June 24 of last year, but then closed on July 8 due to Tropical Storm Elsa. WhoaZone employees removed 60-plus pieces of equipment from the water ahead of the storm, but some of the equipment was damaged during the removal. That led to WhoaZone assessing both the equipment and its protocols for severe weather events and deciding not to return for the remainder of the 2021 season.

“As a result of these assessments, WhoaZone determined that they could not get back in the water in a timely fashion, thus affecting their ability to generate revenue and retain staff,” Mary Rapoza, Director of the New Bedford Dept. of Parks, Recreation and Beaches, said at the time. “They decided at that time that they would not return to the water (that) summer.”

WhoaZone said last summer that it had planned on returning to New Bedford in 2022. However, the New Bedford location has now been removed from the company website.

We have reached out to WhoaZone for a statement and will update this story if one is provided.