An Indian family in Victoria region of Australia has been left shocked and grieving after their eight-year-old boy tragically drowned in a swimming pool of a real estate agency’s display home. The fencing was in place around the uncovered pool.
The young boy was found unresponsive in a pool of a G.J Gardener display home located in Kialla, about 30 minutes south of Shepparton, northern Victoria on Sunday, 9 November, according to media reports.
The boy, identified today as Gurshabad Singh had special needs and was reportedly celebrating a family birthday at a nearby residence when he wandered into the display home shortly before 7pm on Sunday.
Paramedics arrived on the scene, but the boy could not be revived and sadly died, a police statement said.
Recounting the tragic event, the boy’s father, Talwinder Singh, told the ABC that after they realised their child was missing, he ran through the streets looking for Gurshabad, who was just weeks away from his ninth birthday.
His father said their autistic son “just jumped” into the water and drowned.
The distraught father is pleading for a rule change that would mandate pools to be covered, as this could have prevented his son’s death.
“Why not cover (the pool) when no one is attending the house?” he said. “Just cover the bloody pool so the kids can’t see, they can’t go in. Cover the pools, that’s all. That’s what I want,” pleaded Talwinder Singh.
The family and the local community were heartbroken by the boy’s passing, he said.
Meanwhile, the real estate agency G.J Gardner has expressed their sincere condolences to the family of the young boy.
In a statement, they told The Nightly, “We were devastated to learn of the tragic accidental drowning at one of our display homes in Shepparton, Victoria, over the weekend.”
The agency also confirmed that fencing was in place around the pool, and it was in compliance with all pool safety regulations.
Police said the investigation into the child’s death is ongoing, and a report will be prepared for the coroner.
Home swimming pool deaths in New Zealand are a significant concern, particularly for young children, though mandatory fencing laws have dramatically reduced pre-school drownings compared to past decades. All home pools must be fenced to meet the requirements of the Fencing of Swimming Pools Act 1987. Among other preventive measures, gates and access need to be secured at all times.
In the five-year period from 2016 to 2020 ten young children aged under five years drowned in home pools, one of these in a portable pool.
