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<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>China national drowns in sea off Changi Beach
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><TR>Factory worker, 20, was non-swimmer; third drowning case in a week </TR><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By Teh Joo Lin
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=330>
</TD><TD width=10>
</TD><TD vAlign=bottom>
Navy divers carrying away the body of Mr Lin after it was spotted by a beach-goer at around 7pm, about six hours after he went under. The Chinese national was last seen in chest-deep water just off the shore before he disappeared. -- ST PHOTO: SHAHRIYA YAHAYA
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->A CHINESE national drowned in the sea off Changi Beach yesterday afternoon in the third drowning incident here in a week.
Mr Lin Zhong, a 20-year-old who worked in a furnishings factory, was said to be with three colleagues in chest-deep water just off the shore when he went under.
It is unclear how much time elapsed before another co-worker discovered that Mr Lin, who could not swim, had disappeared. No one heard any cries for help.
The colleague, Mr Ang Lian Kwee, 64, said he was swimming towards the shore when he saw a head bobbing in the water. Soon after, it disappeared.
He raised the alarm, sparking a search mission by police boats, amphibious vehicles and rescue divers. The body was recovered six hours later after being spotted by a beach-goer just before nightfall.
Mr Ang told The Straits Times that he had taken the group of four Chinese workers to the beach - their first time there - yesterday around noon.
They stripped down to their swimming shorts and played in the water about 2m from the shore, while Mr Ang swam out farther.
At about 1pm, Mr Ang was about 35m out and facing the beach when he saw a head of black hair drifting away.
He jerked his head towards the group and realised there were only three men - who were taking photos - near the shore.
He quickly swam towards Mr Lin, but his head vanished when he was 3m or 4m away. 'I swam there and groped and kicked everywhere but I couldn't feel him anywhere in the water,' he said in Mandarin.
Mr Ang screamed at his colleagues and beach-goers for help.
Mr Baskkaran Venkatesan, a 29-year- old air-conditioning technician, was building a sandcastle with his five-year- old son when he heard the cries. He said one of the workers tried calling Mr Lin on his mobile phone in the hope that he had left the water without their knowledge.
Another worker approached volunteer lifeguard Patrick Leong, 45, who paddled around in his canoe searching for Mr Lin while waiting for the police and Singapore Civil Defence Force to arrive. Navy divers later joined in the search.
As the search continued, Mr Lin's friends sat on the beach staring at the waters in disbelief.Mr Lin's friends were so shocked they could hardly speak about the incident.
A friend who arrived at the scene said Mr Lin came to Singapore to work about a year ago after finishing college in China. He had no relatives here.
The search came to an end at around 7pm, when a man walking along the beach spotted a body in the water about 100m away from where Mr Lin was believed to have gone under.
Mr Nor Baidin Khalidin, a 59-year- old retired police officer, said he heard about the drowning when he arrived at the beach.
'Soon after, I saw a body face down in the water. I waited a while to make sure it was not a swimmer...then I ran to tell the police,' he said.
The drowning occurred during high tide. Mr Leong said the currents in the area were not especially strong. However, while non-swimmers may not find themselves straying too far from shore, they may panic if they suddenly step on a soft spot on the seabed and do not know how to react, he added.
Shaking his head, Mr Ang said he knew the Changi Beach area well and added: 'I don't understand how he could have drowned.'
Last Tuesday, a 35-year-old man drowned while fishing in 5m-deep Jurong Lake. Three days later, a canoe instructor of the same age drowned while coaching students at MacRitchie Reservoir.
The police are investigating the latest case as an unnatural death. [email protected]
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><TR>Factory worker, 20, was non-swimmer; third drowning case in a week </TR><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By Teh Joo Lin
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=330>
</TD><TD width=10>
Navy divers carrying away the body of Mr Lin after it was spotted by a beach-goer at around 7pm, about six hours after he went under. The Chinese national was last seen in chest-deep water just off the shore before he disappeared. -- ST PHOTO: SHAHRIYA YAHAYA
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->A CHINESE national drowned in the sea off Changi Beach yesterday afternoon in the third drowning incident here in a week.
Mr Lin Zhong, a 20-year-old who worked in a furnishings factory, was said to be with three colleagues in chest-deep water just off the shore when he went under.
It is unclear how much time elapsed before another co-worker discovered that Mr Lin, who could not swim, had disappeared. No one heard any cries for help.
The colleague, Mr Ang Lian Kwee, 64, said he was swimming towards the shore when he saw a head bobbing in the water. Soon after, it disappeared.
He raised the alarm, sparking a search mission by police boats, amphibious vehicles and rescue divers. The body was recovered six hours later after being spotted by a beach-goer just before nightfall.
Mr Ang told The Straits Times that he had taken the group of four Chinese workers to the beach - their first time there - yesterday around noon.
They stripped down to their swimming shorts and played in the water about 2m from the shore, while Mr Ang swam out farther.
At about 1pm, Mr Ang was about 35m out and facing the beach when he saw a head of black hair drifting away.
He jerked his head towards the group and realised there were only three men - who were taking photos - near the shore.
He quickly swam towards Mr Lin, but his head vanished when he was 3m or 4m away. 'I swam there and groped and kicked everywhere but I couldn't feel him anywhere in the water,' he said in Mandarin.
Mr Ang screamed at his colleagues and beach-goers for help.
Mr Baskkaran Venkatesan, a 29-year- old air-conditioning technician, was building a sandcastle with his five-year- old son when he heard the cries. He said one of the workers tried calling Mr Lin on his mobile phone in the hope that he had left the water without their knowledge.
Another worker approached volunteer lifeguard Patrick Leong, 45, who paddled around in his canoe searching for Mr Lin while waiting for the police and Singapore Civil Defence Force to arrive. Navy divers later joined in the search.
As the search continued, Mr Lin's friends sat on the beach staring at the waters in disbelief.Mr Lin's friends were so shocked they could hardly speak about the incident.
A friend who arrived at the scene said Mr Lin came to Singapore to work about a year ago after finishing college in China. He had no relatives here.
The search came to an end at around 7pm, when a man walking along the beach spotted a body in the water about 100m away from where Mr Lin was believed to have gone under.
Mr Nor Baidin Khalidin, a 59-year- old retired police officer, said he heard about the drowning when he arrived at the beach.
'Soon after, I saw a body face down in the water. I waited a while to make sure it was not a swimmer...then I ran to tell the police,' he said.
The drowning occurred during high tide. Mr Leong said the currents in the area were not especially strong. However, while non-swimmers may not find themselves straying too far from shore, they may panic if they suddenly step on a soft spot on the seabed and do not know how to react, he added.
Shaking his head, Mr Ang said he knew the Changi Beach area well and added: 'I don't understand how he could have drowned.'
Last Tuesday, a 35-year-old man drowned while fishing in 5m-deep Jurong Lake. Three days later, a canoe instructor of the same age drowned while coaching students at MacRitchie Reservoir.
The police are investigating the latest case as an unnatural death. [email protected]
:p
the young ah tiongs cannot float to stay alive.
