A seven-year-old boy tragically died after becoming trapped in a swimming pool's suction duct at a wellness retreat in Italy. Gabriele Petrucci had been celebrating his birthday, which occurred two days earlier, with his parents and friends at the Complesso Termale Vescine in Castelforte on Saturday, 18 April.
Gabriele was in the shallow water with his mother while his father, Antonello, stood just a few yards away at the pool's edge. Suddenly, the boy disappeared. 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 could not 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.'
Despite efforts to revive him, Gabriele could not be saved. The family's lawyer, Francesco Lauri, stated, 'They tried to revive him for a long time, but there was nothing they could do.' Early findings suggest that the outdoor pool's suction pipe was missing a protective grate, which may have contributed to the incident.
This is a developing story. Further updates will be provided as more information becomes available.
