Society

Student falls to death before exam

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-06-09 04:06

CHANGSHA - A high school graduate fell to his death from a dormitory building Tuesday in central Hunan Province ahead of the national college entrance examination, local authorities confirmed Wednesday.

Related readings:  Exam provides boon to businesses  China starts college entrance exam  Despite age, man sits national exam 15th time  China targets hi-tech cheating before Gaokao exam

The public security bureau in Longhui County received a report saying a graduate at the county's No. 1 high school fell from a dormitory building at about 9 am Tuesday, the county government said in a statement.

The student, surnamed Lv, was immediately sent to a hospital but died of severe injuries, it said.

The student's father confirmed the report Wednesday on weibo.com, the Twitter-like microblogging service in China, that his son died after falling from a dormitory building at 8:50 am Tuesday.

Speculation has swirled on weibo.com that the student committed suicide after he was refused entry to the examination room for being 15 minutes late. But the county government has refuted those claims.

An anonymous county government official said the death had nothing to do with being late, as the first exam started at 9 am Tuesday and the student lived on campus where the examination was given.

The student did have a heavy psychological burden ahead of the make-or-break moment, and his father even accompanied him the night before the exam, the official said.

Local police are investigating the cause of death.