200kg woman dies in her sleep

SINGAPORE - Depot staff Hong Xiu Hua passed away in her sleep on Saturday morning after drinking holy water.

As the 47-year-old's stomach was getting bigger and bigger to the point of abdominal swelling, her weight soared from 80 kg when she was 30 to 200 kg.

Her husband, Hu Baoshun, 50, said in an interview with Lianhe Wanbao on Sunday morning that his wife has always been plump, but gained bigger in the recent years.

"She refused to go to the hospital for examination. But she finally agreed to go to a family doctor early this year. However, her situation did not improve despite taking her prescribed medication," said Mr Hu.

He said that his wife thought that someone broke into their home the day before, insisted they were bewitched, and rushed to get the holy water.

"She went to sleep after drinking the temple water at around 11 pm that night. She would usually say a lot of nonsensical things after that, but she was very quiet that night. Nothing felt amiss as I could hear her breathing."

The next morning at 11am, he tried waking his wife up. He shouted, slapped, and even rubbed her stomach - but there was no response. He was confused and did not know what to do.

By 2pm, he realised that something was not right as his wife's hands became cold and stiff. He immediately called for an ambulance.

Mr Hu also revealed that in the past two days, his wife had no bowel movements, and that "there was nothing that come out".

The pair has two sons and a daughter.

zacsoh@sph.com.sg

This article was translated from Lianhe Wanbao.