Pakistani boy in coma dies after Dubai nursery drowning incident

Dubai - The family plans to fly Raza's body back to his native Pakistan from Dubai as soon as possible.

A two-year-old boy has tragically passed away, 27 days after being admitted to ICU following a drowning incident at his nursery in Dubai.
On May 19, Syed Raza Abbas's lifeless body was allegedly pulled from a pool on the premises of his Satwa-based nursery. But on Tuesday afternoon, after more than three weeks in a coma, he sadly lost his battle for life.
"With deep regret, I wanted to inform you that Raza passed away today afternoon," Asher Jaffri, nephew of the boy's father, Safdar Abbas, told Khaleej Times on Tuesday.
"The pain and suffering that my family is going through (is immense)," he said.
The family plans to fly Raza's body back to his native Pakistan from Dubai as soon as possible.
"I believe they are flying tomorrow (Wednesday).they are aiming to land in Karachi by Thursday."
His family will accompany his body.
Speaking to Khaleej Times' reporter on Tuesday evening, his heartbroken father said: "I'll be flying to Pakistan for my son's funeral. I will come back and I will bring the school management to trial. I want them to feel my pain to their core of existence."
On the day of the tragic incident, staff allegedly found young Raza's body floating in the pool after noticing he was missing at the end of morning playtime.
When Khaleej Times visited the boy's family at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Latifa Hospital on May 23, his father and uncle called the incident "suspicious".
They could not fathom how Raza was able to make his way to the pool alone, without anyone noticing him - especially given the fact it was at least 50m from the play area.
"What we know from the doctor is that he had suffered a cardiac arrest for about 45 minutes," Abbas said at that time.
Raza had only been a student at the nursery for a few months before the tragedy took place.
Prior to the drowning, Abbas had made an informal complaint to the nursery's principal about marks he had found on his son's face. And the very morning of the incident, Abbas and his wife had met with the principal at the school's office.
Since May 19, the nursery has remained closed, with remaining students now attending its sister branch in Deira.
One parent, who wished to remain anonymous, said her 3-year-old was son transferred to the second nursery on May 29 for an "unspecified period", but said he remains there to this day.
Upon hearing the news of Raza's death, she was shocked.
"I just don't know what to say, I feel very sad to hear the tragic news."
A second parent, whose daughter was a classmate of Raza, was unaware of the young boy's passing.
Saddened by the news, he said the nursery have shed very little light on the situation.
"Everyday (the management) is giving us new excuses for the closure of the Nursery. On top of that, they keep asking us to send our child to the Deira branch."
Something he is now very hesitant to do.
Little Raza leaves behind a young brother who was born earlier this year, along with his mother, father and a very large and close-knit extended family.
"I am certain my uncle (Safdar) will return to Dubai after things settle down a bit to seek firm justice for his son," Jaffri said.
When Khaleej Times spoke to the nursery's lawyer late on Tuesday evening, he said it was doing all it can to "support the investigation".
"We are waiting for the reports from the concerned authorities, but our heartfelt condolences go out to the family of this little boy. This was a tragic accident, and like everyone, we were hoping for a miracle. This is a very sad time for all involved."
In response to the claims that parents feel they have been left in the dark since May 19, he said all the families were made aware that an incident had taken place, which is why the nursery was closed.
kelly@khaleejtimes.com

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