NUS student in fatal fall after being locked out of room
Tragedy struck a residential hostel at the National University of Singapore (NUS) last Saturday morning, when an 18-year-old female student fell and died.
The New Paper understands she had been climbing out of a nearby window while trying to reach her room on the seventh storey of the eight-storey Block C of Sheares Hall. It is one of NUS's six residential halls.
It is believed the student is a Korean first-year student.
A police spokesman told TNP they were alerted to a case of fall from height at around 11.40am that day.
The student was found unconscious and sent by paramedics to the nearby National University Hospital (NUH) , where she died from her injuries.
The police have classified the case as an unnatural death and are still investigating.
On Wednesday (Nov 1), An NUS spokesperson confirmed the incident with TNP and said: "We are deeply saddened by the incident, and our thoughts are with the family and friends of the student.
"NUS staff and counsellors are in touch with the student's family and friends to provide support and assistance."
Residents said Sheares Hall and its individual rooms are only accessible using their matriculation cards. According to Sheares Hall's regulations, students who are locked out of their own rooms may approach the hall office during office hours or a resident fellow after office hours. A service fee might be imposed.
When TNP visited Sheares Hall on Tuesday evening, most students said they had been advised not talk about the incident to the media and were told to direct all queries to the hall's management.
One resident, who declined to be named, told TNP an email had been sent to Sheares' Hall's residents on Saturday afternoon informing them of the student's death. A meeting with all the block's residents was held on Sunday night.
The resident added a wake for the student had been held on Monday evening at Mt. Vernon Sanctuary.
It is believed the student had forgotten to bring her room key and could not access her room.
Located at 20 Heng Mui Keng Terrace, Sheares Hall offers accommodation for more than 500 students in NUS.
In Nov 2015, a similar incident happened in a Choa Chu Kang condominium when Mr Timothy Bell, 22, an Australian jockey, had misplaced the keys to his penthouse at Mi Casa condominium.
He climbed a ledge to enter his unit through a kitchen window but slipped and fell 12 storeys to his death. — ADDTIONAL REPORTING BY JAN LEE
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