Taiwan boy, 3, drowns in bathtub with 20cm-deep water when his dad let him bathe alone

A three-year-old boy in Taiwan reportedly drowned in a bathtub filled with 20 cm-deep water on Mar. 16 when his father let him take a bath alone for around 12 minutes.

Even after being rushed to the hospital, the child could not be resuscitated.

Found unresponsive in bathtub after 12 mins

According to Taiwanese news outlets, the incident occurred in Beitun district in Taichung city on the evening of Mar. 16.

The boy's parents are a 39-year-old businessman, surnamed Zheng (transliteration), and a hairdresser.

The couple have two children, a one-year-old daughter and the three-year-old son.

Preliminary investigations revealed that at around 6pm that day, the boy's mother was still at work, so Zheng was taking care of the children alone.

He took both of them to the bathroom to bathe.

After his daughter had finished, Zheng brought her out to have her dinner.

However, Zheng let his son take a bath alone in the bathtub purportedly to relieve his runny nose and cold symptoms.

After 12 minutes, Zheng, found it unusual that there was silence in the bathroom.

He then rushed back to check on his son.

However, he saw the boy was lying in the bathtub and was unresponsive.

Zheng called for emergency medical services immediately, but when police and paramedics arrived, the child did not show signs of life.

The three-year-old was rushed to the hospital for treatment but was pronounced dead at around 8pm.

Autopsy to be conducted

Investigations found that the bathtub was about 60cm deep, but the water was only filled to a 20cm depth at the time.

The boy was about 90 cm tall.

However, the boy had been having a cold recently, Zheng testified.

On Mar. 17, prosecutors requested for an autopsy to be conducted to confirm the cause of death, Taiwan newspaper Liberty Times Net reported.

The boy's parents were isolated for questioning but subsequently released.

The couple were seen hugging each other and crying bitterly after leaving the interrogation room.

Prosecutors have not ruled out pursuing a case for negligent homicide and a violation of Taiwan's child and juvenile laws.

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