A Chinese woman lost her life on her first visit to Singapore. The incident happened when she entered a hotel pool in an intoxicated state with a friend. Unable to keep afloat, she almost drowned before being rescued and rushed to the hospital. However, she could not make it for long.
Fan Xiaojing, a cosmetic saleswoman by profession, reached Singapore with a friend on May 4. They were staying at Novotel Singapore Clarke Quay, located on River Valley Road.
The women befriended four people, including Tsai Tsung Ju, a local fitness instructor, as reported by the Straits Times. They were drinking whisky and beer at VLV bar a day later when Fan expressed a desire to get into the hotel's swimming pool. She left for the pool without informing her friends, where Tsai found her sitting at the shallow end.
The duo was warned by hotel staff that the pool closes at 10 pm, but Fan wanted to walk along the sides of the pool. After a while, she started wading towards the deeper end, while holding the pool's sides for support.
Around 4 am, Fan swum away from the pool wall to reach a red ball seven metres away. After she did not raise her head for air for a long time, Tsai tried to rescue her. However, he was not a good swimmer and soon got out of the pool to call for help.
Two cleaners jumped into the pool and pulled Fan out, who was lying motionless at the pool's bottom by that time. Tsai performed cardio-pulmonary resuscitation on her and immediately called emergency services and the police. Fan was taken to Singapore General Hospital, where she died the following morning.
Coroner Marvin Bay heard this case on October 17, based on Tsai's testimony and the footage of the closed circuit camera. The video showed Fan as visibly intoxicated, unable to walk steadily and leaning against Tsai for support.
The coroner stated this death to be an "unfortunate misadventure", and also warned people to take heed of the risks that drunken pool-goers face. He described this incident as completely "preventable."
"Effective prevention will require careful thought into pool design, safety features and resuscitation equipment, as well as a continual commitment of constant vigilance in monitoring pool users," he added, reported the Straits Times.
