In recent days, another tragic incident of a 7-year-old girl being sucked into a drain at a swimming pool in Poly Tianhui Xi Garden residential area in Qingcheng District, Qingyuan City, Guangdong Province, has been reported. This incident comes after the drowning of a girl at a hotel swimming pool in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province last month.
A video shared by a netizen on September 2 shows the heartbreaking moment when a girl was sucked into the drain of the swimming pool at Poly Tianhui Xi Garden in Qingcheng District, Qingyuan City, resulting in her tragic death.
In the video, three children were playing in the pool when one of them disappeared from the water surface as they reached a corner of the pool. The other two children tried to pull her out. Soon after, the parents of the children, residential security personnel, and pool attendants arrived at the scene. One child was carried away by a parent, and the other child left shortly after. However, it appeared that neither of the children informed the adults present that a child had drowned. The security personnel and pool attendants present did not take any rescue measures.
Later in the video, it shows the evening scene with a fire truck parked by the pool, and firefighters digging up the pavement next to the pool. According to the netizen, “The excavator didn’t dig her out until midnight, the seven or eight-year-old girl.”
Some netizens raised questions, with one pointing out, “Why wasn’t there a filter installed in the water intake pipe?” Another netizen from Guangdong commented, “There was no cover, and the water pipe opening is 25cm wide.” Criticisms were shared by many, such as “The lifeguards were negligent, no adult supervision, too careless.” and “How could a person fit through the drain opening of a swimming pool?”
On September 5, the video uploader informed Jiemu News that the incident occurred on August 29, where a child was sucked into the pool drain and was only found using an excavator in the early hours of the morning. A resident of the residential area mentioned that the pool has been sealed off.
In response to this tragedy, the Emergency Management Bureau of Qingcheng District in Qingyuan City stated to Red Star News that the incident resulted in the death of a 7-year-old girl, and a joint investigation team has been established.
According to public reports, similar incidents have occurred earlier this year.
On August 13, in a swimming and fitness center in Fuyang, Anhui Province, a child was injured when their hand got stuck in the drain pipe due to water pressure while swimming.
On July 18, a 6-year-old girl playing in the pool of a hotel in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, was tragically drowned after being trapped by the drain on her left thigh.
A swimming pool coach told Jiemu News that swimming pools are equipped with water circulation systems that operate 24 hours a day through drain openings known as “human suction black holes.” Many children are unaware of the potential risks of drain openings while swimming. Some may rest their feet on the drains or experiment with the suction force for fun, underscoring the need for parents and safety personnel to remain vigilant.
To prevent similar incidents from happening in the future, an industry expert recommended that individuals caught in a drain should immediately seek help from poolside safety personnel or staff to shut off the water valve of the drain. Additionally, it is advisable to choose swimming pools that are legitimate or newly opened, preferably with drain grates around them to prevent encounters with “human suction black holes.”