DU student drowns in university swimming pool

A first-year student of Dhaka University's philosophy department died while bathing in the university swimming pool yesterday.

Soad Haque, 19, was declared dead by the doctors of the emergency department of Dhaka Medical College Hospital around 2:00pm.

Soad drowned in the swimming pool adjacent to the central playground of DU around 1:30pm. His classmates later took him to DMCH.

Shohag, one of the students who took Soad to the hospital, said that a large number of students were bathing in the pool in the afternoon.

They were doing laps in the pool. After a while, everyone gathered around the pool's edge, but Soad was not there.

"We realised that Soad had drowned," he said, adding that Soad was immediately taken to DMCH.

According to Soad's classmates, he knew how to swim.

Inspector Bachchu Mia, in-charge of DMCH Police Outpost, said the student was brought to the hospital in an unconscious state. The doctors later declared him dead.

His body has been kept in the morgue, he said, adding that the incident is being investigated by Shahbagh Police Station.