BENGALURU: Two foreign nationals were electrocuted at the swimming pool on the third floor of Conrad Bengaluru, a five-star hotel, on Kensington Road in Bengaluru’s Halasuru area on Friday evening. Two others, including an American tourist and a hotel pool attendant, were injured while trying to rescue the victims.
Of the two deceased, Alexander Maximilian Theiss, 57, a German, was working as a Lufthansa crew member, while Juraj Horvat, 45, a Slovak, was on a tour of India. Horat was a project manager with IBM.
The two were swimming in the pool when they were exposed to sudden electric current between 5.15 pm and 5.30 pm.
Screams from pool alert wife moments before tourist’s death
They died on the spot, it was reported. Mathew Desantis, 41, an American staying at the hotel as a tourist, and Rahul Tiwari, 28, a pool attendant and lifeguard employed at the hotel, rushed to rescue the two men after noticing them struggling in the water. But both sustained injuries. They were shifted to Manipal Hospital, where they are said to be out of danger.
Juraj had arrived at the hotel with his family on Friday, while Alexander had checked in a few days ago.
Juraj’s wife Silvia Hotuatova filed a complaint with the Halasuru police stating that she and her husband arrived in India on October 20 to spend holidays. They checked into Conrad on Friday. Around 5.15 pm, Juraj went to the pool at the hotel. When she heard screams from near the pool, Silvia rushed to the spot and found her husband lying motionless in the water.
A hotel staff member jumped into the pool in an attempt to rescue him but sustained injuries. Another person noticed that there was electric current in the pool.
To ensure everyone’s safety, the hotel staff switched off the power supply, pulled the persons out of the water and attempted resuscitation. They managed to revive Mathew Desantis. Subsequently, those affected were shifted to a hospital in an ambulance, the complaint added.
“The exact cause of the accident is yet to be established. Preliminary investigation suggested that the victims suffered electric shock while trying to get out of the pool and drowned. The swimming pool’s electrical installations and safety arrangements will be examined by the electrical inspectorate to ascertain how power leaked into the water. The postmortem report will also throw light on the exact cause of death,” said an officer.
The police have registered a case of death by negligence under Section 106 of BNS against the hotel management.
Cause of death not established: Conrad
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic incident which occurred at Conrad Bengaluru yesterday (Friday) which led to the subsequent passing away of two guests. We offer our deepest condolences to all those impacted. The cause of the incident has not been established and remains subject to a comprehensive investigation by local authorities. We are offering our full support to their investigation. Our team remains available to provide all appropriate assistance to relevant authorities as their investigation continues,” stated the management of Conrad Bengaluru.
Two admitted patients are stable: Manipal Hospital
Four individuals were brought to Manipal Hospital Old Airport Road at approximately 5.10 pm on 30 October 2026, following a water-related incident.
Two individuals were declared deceased. The first one, a 52-year-old foreign national, who was brought to the hospital in a state of cardiac arrest, following which the emergency team immediately initiated CPR and resuscitation. Despite continued resuscitative efforts and all clinical measures, the patient could not be revived and was declared deceased.
The second individual, a German national in his early 40s, was brought to the hospital with no signs of life and was declared brought dead.
“The two patients currently admitted are stable and are being closely monitored. Immediate emergency medical care was provided to all four individuals brought to the hospital,” said Dr Mabel Vasnaik, Chairman & Consultant – Emergency Medicine, Manipal Hospital Old Airport Road.
Bescom’s version
Bescom officials clarified that the incident was not because of any fault of their organisation. There were no mistakes in power supply on our part, they added. Officials from the Department of Electrical Inspectorate under the Energy Department said they are yet to investigate.
