A toddler drowned in a fountain at the St. Vincent Pallotti College at Chelikere in Hennur Tuesday evening.
Beronica Nayak (18 months) was splashing around in the two-foot-deep water and is suspected to have accidentally fallen into it around 5 p.m.
She was the only child of Samir and Nileema Nayak, migrants from Orissa who have been living in Pallotti Nilaya, the office-cum-residential quarters of the Pallottine Fathers, for the past five months. The parents were employed there.
Grief-stricken over the death of her only child, Nileema said she had kept an eye on Beronica. When it started drizzling, everyone went in and when she didn’t see the child with them, she went looking for her in vain.
She continued her search on the campus along with the others but could not find her.
It was only when the security guard spotted the toddler’s body that she realised her only child was gone. “All this happened within 15 minutes and nobody even realised it,” she said, tears welling up in her eyes.
Fr. Gilbert said they rushed the toddler to a private hospital but she was declared brought dead. Speaking to The Hindu, Fr. Rajan said: “Even the students were not there at the time as their classes get over at 3.30 p.m. So no one saw the child falling. The rain too added to the problem as everyone, including the security guard, retreated and took shelter.”
