'See you next time, my beloved daughter': Law student, 19, killed in accident along Joo Chiat Road while family was on holiday

19-year-old Dorothy Tan wanted to be a lawyer just like her dad.

But the first-year law student was struck and killed in an accident last month before that dream could be fulfilled. 

Tan was hit by a van along Joo Chiat Road as she was crossing the road. She later died in hospital.

The accident occurred on June 8 at around 8am near the i12 Katong shopping mall, Shin Min Daily News reported.

It added that a 24-year-old van driver is assisting police with investigations.

Tan's parents, however, are still searching for answers. Social media posts on July 4 and 5 showed posters stuck onto lamp posts in the area, appealing for eye-witnesses to come forward with more information.

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A line from the notice bearing Tan's face read: "If you have any CCTV footage or if you saw anything helpful, please could you tell the police?"

According to Tan's mum, 47, who spoke to the Chinese evening daily, Tan had graduated from Raffles Girls' School last year and was due to embark on her first-year law degree programme at Singapore Management University in August.

Tan was believed to have gone to the gym that morning and was on her way home when the accident occurred.

Her mum also revealed that the entire family was on holiday in Beijing, China, at the time of the accident. Tan was with them but had caught an earlier flight back so that she could attend some church activities.

Tan's mum said they rushed back to Singapore upon being notified by the hospital but "it was too late".

"She was unconscious and already brain-dead. She passed on at 1.30am the next day."

Tan's mother, a human resource assistant, described her eldest daughter as being a bright child who studied French and Japanese. "Her dad is a lawyer so she'd wanted to become a lawyer too; she was looking forward to starting school."

'I saw her hand move'

A worker at the mall who spoke to Shin Min on Saturday (July 6) shared that he was one of those who rushed out to help when he heard about the accident.

Said the man: "There was no sign of blood at the scene…I thought the girl would be okay because I saw her hand move as she was placed in the ambulance and heaved a sigh of relief. To hear that she died is unexpected and upsetting."

He added that around 10 people had come forward to help out but none of them dared to move the girl. Instead, they formed a barricade around her so that other vehicles would steer clear.

Tan's mum had also gotten to know this and other details about the accident from speaking to a mall worker.

"Someone from a nearby clinic had also come forward to check if my daughter had a pulse. Another young woman accompanied her and tried to unlock her phone so that she could call us," said Tan's mum.

She added that she and her husband had put up the posters following the accident in hopes of finding eyewitnesses who could provide police with more information.

"After learning that there were many good Samaritans who came forward to help, I hope to connect with them to thank them as well," she added.

According to Shin Min, the section of road where the accident occurred sees heavy traffic, with no traffic lights nor zebra crossings

The boss of a nearby dry cleaning store told Shin Min that this is not the first accident in the area, and hoped authorities would look into installing a road hump to deter speeding vehicles.

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A statement from the police to AsiaOne said that police were alerted to the accident involving a van and a 19-year-old pedestrian along Joo Chiat Road on June 8 at 8.10am.

The pedestrian was conveyed unconscious to the hospital but she later died. It added that the 24-year-old driver of the van is assisting police with investigations and that investigations are ongoing.

In a heartwrenching post by Tan's mum on June 11, she wrote: "So grateful to God for 19 wonderful years with Dorothy...

"See you next time, my beloved daughter, Dorothy Naomi Tan."

candicecai@asiaone.com