On July 1, Mengmeng (pseudonym), an 8-year-old girl who went back to her grandmother’s home in Fengdu County, Chongqing for the summer vacation, drowned in the Yangtze River. On the 4th, Mengmeng’s mother told reporters that her daughter could not swim and was taken to the Yangtze River by a neighbor they did not know to swim. At present, the local police are coordinating to deal with the matter.
Mengmeng’s mother, Ms. Sun, told Jimu News reporters that not long ago, her daughter went back to her grandmother’s home in Fengdu for the summer vacation. On the afternoon of July 1, Mengmeng was playing with the children of her neighbor Fan downstairs in her grandmother’s community. At around 5 pm, Fan took his two children to swim in the nearby Yangtze River and took Mengmeng with him.
“None of us in the family are familiar with Fan. He took my daughter to swim without asking for the consent of any adult in our family. And my daughter can’t swim at all. He gave her a swimming ring and a ‘tail bug’ and asked my daughter to go with him.” Ms. Sun told reporters that the surveillance video showed that after an adult and three children went into the water by the Yangtze River, Fan was mainly taking care of his two children, and Mengmeng was some distance away from the three of them. At 6:13 in the evening, Mengmeng was caught in a whirlpool.
“From the surveillance, Fan swam towards my daughter, but it was unclear whether he tried his best to rescue her. Just over a minute later, at 6:15, he climbed onto a nearby pontoon by himself.” Ms. Sun said that later a citizen called the police, and the police and rescue workers came to search and rescue. Ms. Sun’s family also came to the scene after hearing the news. “At that time, Fan was watching the excitement on the side and said that he was helping to save people. My family didn’t know that he brought Mengmeng to the riverside. Later, we heard about it from the police.”
That night, Mengmeng’s body was salvaged ashore. Ms. Sun’s family checked multiple surveillance cameras nearby and learned the whole process of the incident. “My daughter is smart and well-behaved, can sing and dance, and often ranks first in academic performance. Her teachers cried when they heard about this.” Ms. Sun was very sad.
Ms. Sun said that in her and her family’s opinion, Fan took Meng Meng, who could not swim, to swim, and did not seem to do his best to rescue Meng Meng after she was in danger, and he was responsible for Meng Meng’s death. But Fan is avoiding this matter and is unwilling to pay for the funeral expenses. The police are currently coordinating, and Ms. Sun is also ready to sue him.
On July 4, a reporter from Jimu News called the Fengdu Police Station of the Chongqing Branch of the Yangtze River Shipping Public Security Bureau. The staff said that the girl’s drowning was true, but the relationship between the parties was unclear. The station only participated in the rescue and salvage work at the time, and the subsequent work was handled by the Chengxi Police Station of the Fengdu County Public Security Bureau.
Relevant personnel from the Fengdu County Public Security Bureau also said that the matter was handled by the Chengxi Police Station. The reporter called the Chengxi Police Station, and the staff who answered the phone said that they did not know about the matter.
According to the staff of the local funeral home, Meng Meng’s body was received at around 3 am on the 2nd.
