A seven-year-old boy di£d after becoming trapped in a swimming pool’s suction duct.
Gabriele Petrucci went to a wellness retreat in Castelforte, Italy with his parents and friends on April 18 to celebrate his birthday two days earlier.
He was in the shallow water with his mother, while his father stood just a few yards away at the pool’s edge, when he suddenly disappeared.
His father, Antonello, recalled: “At one point I turned round to put some things down and then I couldn’t see him any more. I saw Gabriele’s little body curled up in this suction pipe. I tried to pull him out with my hands.”
Gabriele was struggling underwater but was unable to resurface.
“Three people helped me and even with them I couldn’t get him out,” Antonello said. “They had to switch off the pump so I could free him. His arm was purple – he fought like a lion to get free.”
