What was meant to be a fun, relaxing visit to the park during the school holidays turned disastrous for this little girl and her family recently.
Singapore girl injured by fishing hook
Mummy Michelle Tew shared this terrible incident on Facebook recently (the post has been taken down now), which happened on May 28, at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park. She and her husband had gone to the park with their 10-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son.
According to The New Paper, it was around 7:30 pm, and this mum and dad were walking in the park, while the kids rode scooters. 3 boys, about 12 -13 years old were swinging a fishing rod, and The Straits Times quotes Michelle as saying, “I saw a boy who was about 12 to 13 beside my daughter, holding a fishing rod with a line and hook.”
It was then that the tragedy happened; the fishing hook on the rod pierced her daughter’s cheek! Mummy Michelle was shocked to see blood oozing out from a 2cm-long wound on her daughter’s face, and as she wrote on Facebook, “You will never know the terror we felt looking at our child standing there with blood (and) a hook on her face.”
Mummy and daddy knew they had to get their little girl to the hospital immediately, they tried to bite off the string from the rod while also shouting at the boys not to pull at the hook, as it would tear the little girl’s skin. In the end, they managed to bite it off with the help of some passers-by.
Girl rushed to hospital
The girl was rushed to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, where she needed a 30 minute long operation to remove the hook. She ended up with 4 stitches on her cheek.
PHOTO: FACEBOOK/ MICHELLE TEW
Apparently, the boys have already apologised for their mistake, so no police report will be lodged by Michelle.
The principal of My Fishing Frenzy Academy, which holds fishing courses and organises fishing trips, has stressed on the importance of educating children on using fishing rods properly. He has been quoted by The New Paper as saying, “If children are going fishing, they have to be aware that the fish hook is a sharp object and can harm others.”
Indeed. Children should be made aware that playing with fishing rods like swords and swinging them around can cause grave harm to others. How painful it must have been for this little girl to have the sharp hook lodged in her cheek all that time!
Meanwhile, the National Parks Board and PUB has told The Straits Times that fishing with a rod and line is not permitted at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park, except at the Landscape Pond.
In their statement they write, “We would like to remind park users to be responsible, mindful and considerate to one another, and to follow the regulations and guidelines within the park. This includes fishing only in designated fishing areas and carrying fishing equipment with care. Children should also be accompanied by adults during fishing activities.”
(Source: The Straits Times, The New Paper)
Republished with permission from: theAsianParent Singapore
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