Poolside panic: Daring rescue mission frees Chinese girl trapped in Pattaya’s suction pipe

Photo courtesy of KhaoSod.

An intense rescue mission unfolded at a Pattaya resort today when a six year old girl from China got her arm stuck in a swimming pool’s suction pipe. For over three hours, personnel from the Sawang Boriboon Foundation Pattaya City Station worked tirelessly to free her arm.

The incident took place at a holiday resort in Huai Yai, in Pattaya’s Bang Lamung district. The girl’s left arm had become ensnared in a water recirculation pipe, which is typically used to transport water to the pool’s filtration system. Throughout the ordeal, her father stayed by her side, holding her up, and comforting her, as she became increasingly distressed and frightened.

The rescue mission was fraught with difficulties, largely due to the pool’s construction. Firstly, the resort staff had to drain over half of the water from the pool. Then, using an electric drill, the rescue team punched through the concrete surrounding the pipe. Once the PVC (polyvinyl chloride) pipe was cut open, the girl’s arm, still encased in a section of the pipe, was extracted. The PVC section was then carefully removed from her arm amidst palpable tension.

The overall rescue mission took more than three hours, after which the girl was sent to a hospital for preliminary treatment. According to the officials, the accident seems to have been caused by a missing cover on the suction pipe, combined with the powerful pull from the filtration system pump, which drew the child’s arm into the pipe reported KhaoSod.

In a recent incident at Bangkok Airport, a woman tragically lost her leg on an escalator, sending shockwaves through the online community and igniting intense debates on airport and passenger safety. While she was simply walking on the escalator’s walkway, her leg was unexpectedly drawn into the machinery, resulting in a devastating injury up to the kneecap.

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Nattapong Westwood

Nattapong Westwood is a Bangkok-born writer who is half Thai and half Aussie. He studied in an international school in Bangkok and then pursued journalism studies in Melbourne. Nattapong began his career as a freelance writer before joining Thaiger. His passion for news writing fuels his dedication to the craft, as he consistently strives to deliver engaging content to his audience.