Friday, October 21, 2011

Republic of Singapore Air Force: Tunnel crawl game may have caused enlarged liver to rupture

Second Warrant Officer (2WO) Poh Eng Ann collapsed at Paya Lebar Airbase on Apr 24, 2009, and was pronounced dead the same day.
-- PHOTO: THE POH FAMILY

A 'tunnel crawl' of an F-5 aircraft by a senior technician with the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF), who took part in the game, may have caused his pre-existing enlarged liver to rupture, said a coroner on Friday.

State Coroner Imran Abdul Hamid was giving his findings on the death of Second Warrant Officer (2WO) Poh Eng Ann at Changi General Hospital on April 24, 2009, after he collapsed at Paya Lebar Airbase.

The 36-year-old regular had an undiagnosed liver condition due to hepatitis. His liver was one-and-a-half times larger than normal, soft and more susceptible to rupture as a result of any trauma, like a knock or compression of his right chest or upper abdomen, the court heard.

A higher board of inquiry (HBOI) convened by the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) in April that year had concluded that none of the day's activities that 2WO Poh took part in during a 'welcome ceremony' - a regular, informal annual event for newly posted or newly promoted servicemen - could have led to the rupture.

http://www.straitstimes.com
SINGAPORE: The crawl through an F-5 aircraft's narrow engine may have caused a Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) regular's pre-existing condition of an enlarged liver to rupture and killed him, a coroner said on Friday.

State Coroner Imran Abdul Hamid was giving his findings on the death of Second Warrant Officer (2WO) Poh Eng Ann on April 24, 2009, after the 36-year-old took part in games organised for newly-posted or newly-promoted servicemen.

One of the games, called the "tunnel crawl", involved crawling through the 5.2m-long engine of the jet, which measured 48cm by 30cm.

Although 2WO Poh, who was 1.74m tall and weighed 84kg, completed the non-compulsory, non-competitive activity without any apparent difficulty, he had an undiagnosed liver condition because of hepatitis, the court heard.

His liver, which was one-and-a-half times larger than normal, was soft and more susceptible to rupture as a result of any trauma, like a knock or compression to his right chest or upper abdomen, according to a forensic pathologist.

2WO Poh did not complain of any discomfort before or immediately after the crawl but, after more than an hour, he was seen foaming and could not be resuscitated.

A Higher Board of Inquiry (HBOI) convened by the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) after the fatality had earlier concluded that none of the day's activities could have led to the rupture.

But after the court asked MINDEF to clarify, in light of the pathologist's opinion, if it completely excluded the link between the rupture and the "tunnel crawl", the HBOI was reconvened and on Friday concluded that it could not rule out the possibility.

After the hearing, 2WO Poh's widow, Ms Eileen Chuan Li Eng, was visibly shaken.

She muttered: "I'm in a state of ... I don't know ..." before she broke down and hugged her family.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com

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