COVID-19 Patient Who Died from Fall in Hospital Had Filmed 2 Videos Before His Death

By now, COVID-19 in Singapore is mostly under control; so much so that bosses can finally order us back to the office next week.

But a few months back, when we were all stuck at home with Netflix and YouTube, the dormitory clusters were at its peak, and for a short period of time, we read about deaths of infected migrant workers that weren’t caused by COVID-19.

One of which is Mr Alagu Periyakaruppan, who was found with injuries at a staircase landing in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital on 23 April 2020.

It was such a high-profile case that even our ministers visited the dormitory that Mr Periyakaruppan had stayed in.

Today, we finally get to know what happened.

COVID-19 Patient Who Died from Fall Had Filmed 2 Videos Before His Death

According to the autopsy, he had injuries such as a ruptured heart, bleeding into chest cavities, fractured ribs and bleeding over the surface of the brain.

There was no evidence of pneumonia, a disease caused by the coronavirus.

This means he’s died from the injuries sustained in the fall.

This information was revealed in a coroner’s court today (24 Sept).

Mr Periyakaruppan was admitted to the hospital on 19 April.

According to the police, he has most probably removed a window pane in his ward, which is on the seventh floor. He could’ve climbed out and landed on the third floor.

A staff nurse was then putting on her protection equipment outside the ward when she heard a thud. She then tried looking for him in the toilet and could only find the window pane on the floor and a pair of slippers next to the window.

About an hour before his death, he had filmed two videos in the toilet. In one of them, he had said, “The doctors are saying that I have coronavirus. Therefore I do not wish to stay alive. I am ready to lose my life. Nobody or nothing has anything to do with this. I have recorded this with a sober mind.”

No Lapse Found

According to the chairman of a committee convened by the hospital after the incident, they found no lapse.

Mr Periyakaruppan has been told that he would recover from the disease, though he did mention about his worries about “his financial future as well as worrying about his kids in India.”

Read Also: Minister: COVID-19 Cases in Dorms Should Fall as More Tests Are Done