NUS student, 19, dies after falling from height at Prince George's Park Residences

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A 19-year-old student from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has passed away after falling from height at the Prince George's Park Residences (PGPR) on campus.

According to an internal circular seen by Mothership, the student passed away on the morning of Oct. 14, at a hospital.

This was confirmed in a statement issued by the NUS Students' Union on Oct. 16, which said the student succumbed to his injuries.

The email added that both the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) were notified immediately after the fall and arrived shortly afterwards.

In response to Mothership's queries, SCDF said they received a call for assistance at 3:05am on Oct. 14, and that the student was conveyed to National University Hospital (NUH).

The police told Mothership that they received a call for assistance at 15 Prince Geroge's Park on Oct. 14 at 3:13am.

A 19-year-old man was found unconscious at the reported location and taken to the hospital, where he subsequently passed away, police said.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Resident advisors and counsellors have reached out to provide support

The circular issued on Oct. 16 also stated that resident advisors and counsellors have reached out to individuals affected by the incident to provide support in the wake of the incident and urged people not to speculate or share unverified information.

In addition, resident assistants have been given the "necessary information" by the resident advisors, according to the circular.

The circular further said:

"We are also finding out if other residents may be affected as bystanders and will be reaching out to them with support and counselling.'

In the meantime, the university said that it is also in touch with the student's family and friends to provide support and assistance, and the matter is currently under police investigation.

In response to Mothership.sg's queries, NUS said:

The university is deeply saddened by the passing of one of our students on the morning of Oct. 14, 2021.

The student fell from height at Prince George's Park Residences. The Singapore Civil Defence Force and the police were immediately notified and arrived shortly after. The student was conveyed to hospital, and we were subsequently informed that he had passed away. Police investigations are ongoing.

Our thoughts are with the student’s family and friends during this difficult time. We are in touch with the student’s family to provide support and assistance. Our resident advisors and counsellors have also reached out and are providing pastoral care and support to affected students and staff.

We encourage everyone in our community who needs support to reach out to their resident advisor, University Counselling Centre, or call the NUS Lifeline.

Criticised for lack of crisis communication and steps taken to ensure residents' well-being

The internal circular was sent a day after a Reddit forum post titled, "An open plea to NUS and PGP management", made its rounds online.

The Redditor criticised the management for not taking proactive steps to communicate to the rest of resident body to address the rumours or incident on campus.

The Redditor also lamented about the steps taken to ensure residents' well-being after the tragedy:

"Multiple rumoured deaths by suicide occurred and disappointingly, there was no attempt at communication of any sort towards the rest of the resident body to address this rumour/ incident. It’s like the management team of PGP is jaded over the deaths of students... “It’s just another death, we don’t really care, nothing will happen if this doesn’t get leaked to the press”... is the kind of attitude we perceive from you.

The only interaction we received from anyone from PGP “management” was the guard who was shouting at us to get back into our rooms. However, we saw what we saw and we knew what we saw."

[...]

In a high stress environment like in NUS, how effective would simple emails about the school caring about “wellness” or “wellbeing” be? I know the school has articles on websites to how to deal pick up signs of suicide or deal with suicidal individuals, but do you think that is adequate?"

Students' experiences

Mothership spoke to three students who are current students living in PGP.

Two of them were unaware of the incident or incidents at PGP but one had overheard a cleaner saying that she "was afraid to clean the third floor as someone jumped from there".

Another student, James (not his real name), shared that there was an ambulance and police car entering PGP Hall -- another type of accommodation, but with more social activities than PGPR -- a few weeks ago, before the Oct. 14 incident.

James echoed the same sentiment as the Redditor, describing the way PGP and NUS handled the communication as "extremely top down".

He said:

"I understand the necessity to respect the deceased and to keep the information limited to not cause panic but I believe some form of basic communication should at least be made by the PGP management to all the residents. It's very disturbing when rumours are flying all over the 20 over blocks in PGP, with some residents even witnessing the scene first hand but for the management team to attempt to keep us quiet and pretend nothing has happened.

I'm quite sure if the Reddit post didn't blow up they would not have sent the email informing residents of the suicide attempt"

James said he felt "strongly" about this incident as cases like this also shows how PGP "failed to be a home away from home" for foreign students.

He also pointed out how foreign students may already be struggling with loneliness after being away from home for a long time due to Covid-19, and therefore it is pertinent for the university or PGP management to take active steps to care for the residents on campus.

James added that the university could have made a more definitive response to stop the spread of rumours which causes panic.

"At one point I thought there were two suicide cases because so many of my friends were asking," he told Mothership.

He also said the management should assign counsellors to go talk to residents instead of relying on the affected ones to go to the University Health Centre themselves

Student union: Avoid speculation

In the updated statement by the NUS Students' Union on Oct. 16 evening, the union wrote that the Office of Student Affairs had shared more details with them after their first statement posted on Oct. 15.

The union then outlined the steps that the office took to ensure the well-being of affected persons.

They noted that there were posts on Reddit which contained speculations surrounding the incident, including a post which had called for a "civil demonstration" on campus.

The union added:

"While the union acknowledges that transparency and accountability of the university administration are important, there is a pressing need to balance transparency with privacy of the persons involved in the incident, with outreach focused on the students who need them most."

They also urged students to avoid spreading unverified information and speculation.

Helplines

If you or someone you know are in mental distress, here are some hotlines you can call to seek help, advice, or just a listening ear:

SOS 24-hour Hotline: 1-767

Singapore Association for Mental Health: 1800-283-7019

Institute of Mental Health: 6389-2222 (24 hours)

Tinkle Friend: 1800-274-4788 (for primary school-aged children)

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