On Friday (23 August), an 18-month-old toddler succumb to her injuries in the hospital after a standing mirror fell on her inside fashion store Urban Revivo at Jewel Changi Airport.
Chinese-language evening paper Lianhe Wanbao has identified her as Lai Jiaxin, a tourist from China, who was here with her family and were set to fly back to Xiamen at 3pm. The tragedy occurred just three hours before the flight.
It was revealed by a spokesman for Jewel Changi Airport that the accident happened because a full-length mirror in the store had fallen and injured the little girl. The staff on-site also performed first aid to the child while waiting for the paramedics to arrive.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force noted that they attended to a medical incident at 78 Airport Boulevard at 12.33pm on Friday. They added that the girl was unconscious when she was taken to Changi General Hospital, and was later pronounced dead.
Based on the article by Lianhe Wanbao, it was reported that a few children who were playing inside the fashion store had knocked down the full length, stand-alone mirror. The mirror then fell on the toddler, who happened to be standing in front of it.
The incident is said to have been recorded on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, but is yet to be released.
Urban Revivo expressed that it was “deeply saddened by the tragic accident” and it was helping the police with its investigations, the ST said.
Both Jewel Changi Airport and the fashion store said that they were in touch with the family of the girl and are supporting them through this tough time.
Images taken after the accident show that the store was cordoned off and a sign was place stating that it was “closed for stock take”.
On Saturday morning, the toddler’s family collected her body from the morgue accompanied by Jewel staff, the Chinese newspaper reported.
Before the she was cremated on Sunday at about 8.45am at Mandai Crematorium, her mother and other family members made their way to the Urban Revivo store first to conduct prayers, the ST noted.
Based on Urban Revivo’s website, it is a Chinese fashion clothing line founded in 2006, and has 200 stores in China and across the world, including Europe, North America and Japan. In Singapore, the store has three outlets, and they are located at Jewel Changi Airport, Plaza Singapura and Raffles City.
This is not the first accident to happen at Jewel Changi Airport since it opened in April. There were a few other incidents that were reported in the last few month, but most of them involved were only minor injuries.
Upon reading this news, many netizens said that parents should always keep an eye on their kids and not to treat retail stores as the kids’ playground. They added in ST’s Facebook page that it’s the parents’ responsibility to watch their kids while they’re out in public places, and not expect other people like the retail staff to take care of their kids while they focus on shopping.
Others shared their personal experience where they’ve witnessed many parents who fail to monitor their kids at public spaces like malls, restaurants and MRT trains. They even said that some parents are “not happy” when they are told to watch their kids and not create a nuisance at these areas.
A few of them said that the mirror should be mounted securely on the wall, and not left standing freely as it could topple anytime. Some blamed the store for placing a mirror that lacks safety features as it could easily injure someone. As such, Andy Bai wrote, “Its time all outlets to double check their retails stand mirror to be fastened secure onto the wall”.
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