On November 17th, a 35-year-old man tragically drowned while swimming in an indoor pool in Xiamen, despite the presence of three lifeguards. Surveillance footage revealed that the first two lifeguards did not take any action, while the third lifeguard noticed something was wrong before all three used a pole to bring the man to safety. The entire incident, from the man going underwater to being rescued, lasted nearly 30 minutes.
The victim’s mother-in-law, Ms. Liu, shared with Jiemu News that on the morning of the 17th, her son-in-law was swimming in a pool at a hot spring resort in Xiamen. In the afternoon, the family received a call informing them of the accident.
Ms. Liu recounted that by the time they arrived, her son-in-law had stopped breathing. He was rushed to the hospital where doctors declared him dead due to drowning. Following this, the family reported the incident to the police and obtained surveillance footage from the scene.
The footage provided by the family showed that the incident occurred in an indoor pool with four lanes, and the drowning victim was in the rightmost lane. Only a few people were swimming at the time, with one lifeguard standing near the spot where the man went underwater, but failing to intervene. Approximately five minutes later, another lifeguard came, briefly observed the situation, and left. It was only when the third lifeguard arrived that the issue was noticed, leading to the rescue using a pole. The entire duration from the man swimming to the point of drowning, and then finally being rescued, spanned nearly 30 minutes.
Ms. Liu mentioned that following the incident, none of the lifeguards or pool staff were willing to provide an explanation.
Efforts by reporters to contact the hot spring resort’s public phone line for inquiries were unsuccessful. The family mentioned that the pool remained open the day after the incident but was eventually closed on the 20th. The local police station in Xiamen’s Tong’an District confirmed that investigations into the accident were ongoing.
Subsequently, the online discussions surrounding topics like “Man drowns in pool for nearly 30 minutes without rescue” and “Surveillance footage of man drowning in pool exposed” have sparked public attention.
Internet users expressed their disbelief, stating, “It’s outrageous that three lifeguards couldn’t supervise one pool.” Others remarked, “It’s crystal clear on the surveillance footage; in reality, there’s no excuse for not being able to see.” Comments also highlighted the need for lifeguards to improve their safety awareness and sensitivity, remarking that the lifeguards lacked a sense of safety.
Some shared their own experiences, with one user recounting, “Last summer, I also drowned in a pool while a lifeguard was present, but they didn’t notice my struggles in the water. In a moment of desperation realizing no one would save me, I managed to calm down, float, and save myself.”