I found more info here (news.com.au).
Also shows image of the pipe and:
â[It] appears right now the pump was put in there, and it was probably malfunctioning because of the open pipe that she ended up in was supposed to be pushing water out.â
Fuck sake that was a hard read. That poor mother. I canât even comprehend the purpose of that pipe. They describe it as a lazy river so Iâm assuming itâs some sort of equalizer pipe to the other side. Water flows in one direction around the pool and I think what theyâre saying is the flow of the river was reversed for whatever reason. There would be quite a strong amount of suction through there, even if it wasnât a direct intake line to the pump.
Edit: oh this is old news, months old. Looks like it was indeed an outlet:
âHer poor little body was contorted when she was sucked into this hole and pipe 20 feet back. Her body was inside of the motor when she had to be extracted," he said. "They had to break up concrete in order to extract her, cut pipe. It was absolutely horrific.â
Pumpâs flow was reversed for whatever reason.
Elsewhere I read the pump actually did have an entrapment system engaged and shut off, but by the time she blocked the pipe and sensors detected the obstruction, she was already wedged 20 feet into the pipe.
