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SINGAPORE – While cycling down a slope in a multi-story parking lot, a 13-year-old girl struck a metal railing and held it momentarily before falling six stories, a forensic court heard Thursday (September 3).
The girl, who was relatively new to cycling, had possibly lost control of the bike while walking down the ramp, said an assistant superintendent who had conducted investigations into the case.
The student was found at the foot of Block 526A Pasir Ris Street 51 on January 8 of this year, and was pronounced dead at the scene around 4.28pm.
According to the investigating officer (IO), the fixie bike had belonged to a classmate of the girl.
On the day of the incident, the girl headed to the multi-story parking lot on January 8 after school and had lunch with a group of her classmates.
There, the girl saw three of her male friends riding their fixie bikes and also wanted to try her luck with the bike. A fixie bike is a fixed gear bike that does not have the usual brakes.
To stop the bike, the rider would have to forcefully press the pedal in reverse or place their feet on the ground.
The girl settled on a 103cm tall bike as it suited her 153cm height. Although initially struggling to balance on the bike, the girl managed to ride from level 6B of the multi-story parking lot to level 7A. She was accompanied by a classmate, who was walking beside her due to her initial instability.
The friend walked alongside the girl as she lowered the bike down the slope to level 6B. However, she could not keep up with the bike and told the girl to turn right.
According to the IO, the girl did not turn around. She collided with a railing and clung to it for a brief moment. However, before the friend could reach her, the girl “couldn’t hold on anymore” and fell to the ground, the IO said.
A witness called the police at 4.05pm, saying a student had fallen out of the parking lot.
An autopsy report on the girl concluded that she suffered fractures of the skull and ribs. According to the examination, the cause of death was multiple injuries consistent with a fall from a height and there was no reason to suspect a dirty act. No alcohol or drugs were detected in the girl’s system.
State Coroner Kamala Ponnamapalam asked the IO if he could establish why the girl had not been able to turn right and was going straight.
While the IO was unable to give a conclusive reason, it suggested that the girl may not have been familiar with the bicycle and lost control while riding, according to accounts from her friend and the girl’s father.
Her father had told the IO that the girl only started learning to ride a bike when she was in Primary Six. Her friend said the girl had trouble controlling the bike when she first got on it.
The coroner’s case is still in court and the findings will be delivered at a later date.
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