Man Had Nearly Managed to Save 14YO in Changi Beach Park But The Wave Was Too Strong

Yesterday, it was reported a 14-year-old boy had died in Changi Beach Park.

The SCDF was called in at about 3:30pm to the premises, and when they arrived at the scene, they found a person on the shore.

The person was first assessed by an SCDF paramedic and sent to Changi General Hospital, and it was unknown if he was conscious.

Knowing that another person was in the waters, the SCDF’s elite team, the Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team, deployed divers to perform an underwater search.

They eventually found the body of a 14-year-old about 15 metres from the shore in the waters, and the teenager was pronounced dead on the scene by an SCDF paramedic.

More details of the incident have since been reported.

Nearly Saved The Boy

According to Shin Min Daily News, the deceased was part of a group of seven teenagers from the same secondary school, and they had been at the beach to swim and fish.

However, TODAYonline understands that it’s a group of six teenagers.

An eyewitness had told Shin Min Daily News that during that period, he heard someone screaming loudly and thought that someone had caught a big fish. It turned out to be a call for help.

A teenager had gone to a group of people, saying that his friend is drowning and they need help.

A total of six people, comprising a family and friends, had jumped into the waters to save them despite the strong waves.

They saw six teenagers and two of them appeared to be struggling.

One of the saviours managed to grab one of the struggling teenagers and brought him to shore.

Another of the saviours nearly saved the deceased—he had managed to grab the hand of the 14-year-old, but the wave became stronger and the grip slipped.

Mother Regretted Letting Teen Go Out

The deceased’s mother rushed to the scene and regretted letting his son to go out yesterday. Usually, on the weekdays, he would stay with a helper in another place, and would only go home during the weekends. This weekend, however, he had stayed in his helper’s house as both his helper and him weren’t feeling well.

She added, “Because my son was sick, I’ve not expected him to go out. If I knew he was going out, I’d have stopped him. And if he had come home this weekend, this won’t have happened.”

Police are investigating the unnatural death.

About Changi Beach Park

Changi Beach Park is one of the oldest coastal parks in Singapore and is about 3.3km long, stretching from Changi Point to Changi Ferry Terminal and overlooks Pulau Ubin.

People often go there to view sunrise from the SAF Changi Ferry Terminal on the eastern end of the park, and view sunsets from Changi Point.

The beach is also well-known as the place for the one of the killing grounds of Sook Ching massacre for the Japanese Imperial Army during the Japanese Occupation of Singapore of the Second World War, where 66 Chinese male civilians were killed on the beach by the Japanese Hojo Kempei on 20 February 1942.