The following article was published in the Straits Times on 10 September 2010.
Maid falls seven floors, dies later in hospital
KIMBERLY SPYKERMAN
Straits Times, Sep 10, 2010
AN INDONESIAN domestic worker died yesterday after she fell out of a seventh-floor window of a flat in Commonwealth Drive.
It is believed that the 23-year-old was hanging the laundry out to dry around 11.20am when she fell. No one else was in the flat at the time.
Beside her motionless body was a broken bamboo pole as well as a pile of clothes.
The woman, who cannot be named as her next-of-kin have yet to be informed, later died in hospital of multiple injuries.
Her employers came to know what had happened only shortly after, when police went up to the unit to find a female family member stranded outside. The 52-year-old told police that she had forgotten to bring her key and the maid was not answering the door.
Police then broke open the lock on the door.
When approached by The Straits Times last night, her employers, who declined to be named, appeared sombre.
'We're still very disturbed by everything,' said one family member. They declined to be interviewed further.
Neighbours added that the dead woman had been with the family for only about two months.
No foul play is suspected, and police are investigating the unnatural death.
A spate of fatal falls a few years ago involving maids who were cleaning windows, hanging laundry or even watering plants, prompted the Manpower Ministry to introduce a slew of initiatives to improve safety awareness.
These included offering safety awareness courses and taking action against errant employers who failed to provide a safe working environment for these maids.
Under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act, errant employers can be fined $5,000 and jailed up to six months. They will also be disallowed from hiring another foreign domestic worker.
