FOR New Town Secondary, the drowning of Danial Syawal Jailani, 12, was a terrible start to its swimming programme.

It was the first year the school decided that its Secondary 1 students should have swimming lessons during physical education classes, a programme being promoted by the National Water Safety Council to stem the rise in the number of drowning incidents.

It was Danial's third lesson at the Clementi Swimming Complex.

Classmates agree that he was no novice.

Janice Sie, 12, said: 'Danial was in the group which knew how to swim, but didn't know how to do proper strokes.'

During Monday's lesson, Danial's group was practising the butterfly and learning the backstroke.

But Danial, who developed a reputation as the class clown, would sometimes horse around, even doing somersaults in the water, she added.

School principal Neo Lay Wah would only say that the students numbered 58 in all and were accompanied by four PE teachers as well as swimming instructors registered with the Singapore Sports Council.

Students said there were three instructors, and each had about 18 to 20 students in his charge.

This ratio is in accordance with the Education Ministry's swimming safety guidelines, according to a teacher from another school who declined to be named.

Students confirmed that other protocols were followed, such as safety briefings on who should stay out of the water. Those who felt unwell were exempted from the lesson.

Danial's death certificate stated that he died of drowning and asphyxiation.

The 1.42m boy was found face down in the 0.9m pool by an instructor an hour into the lesson at about 1.40pm.

It appeared that a classmate, seeing him afloat, thought he was playing the fool. He sounded the alarm when Danial did not respond to his nudges.

The instructors carried Danial to the lifeguards' room and tried to resuscitate him before calling an ambulance which took him to the National University Hospital.

He was declared dead two hours later and buried at the Choa Chu Kang Muslim cemetery yesterday.

His mother, housewife Rozni Jumaat, 35, wants to know what exactly happened to the eldest of her four children. 'A classmate told us he fell.''

But there were no visible injuries on him, except for a small circular cut on his left foot.

Madam Neo did not answer queries on this.

When The Straits Times visited the pool yesterday, there were five lifeguards on patrol. They declined to comment.

A spokesman for the Singapore Sports Council said that lifeguards are always present during operating hours.

Meanwhile, the Education Ministry said it does not keep track of the number of secondary schools with swimming programmes, as these are often school-initiated and conducted as enrichment activities.

Students who were present at the time of the incident were counselled by the school's counsellors and teachers.

Madam Rozni said the family had been planning to go to the beach during the Chinese New Year holidays.

'But now it will never happen,' she said.

This story was first published in The Straits Times on Jan 30, 2008