TURA: Search and rescue teams in Williamnagar on Tuesday retrieved the bodies of the two children who had drowned in the Simsang river on Monday.
Teams of the state disaster rescue force, fire and emergency service personnel and local divers conducted an extensive search of the river all throughout Monday but were unable to locate the missing boys, Dean Dechura S Sangma (4) and Pringkam S Sangma (6), who were cousins, after they disappeared into the water when they went for a swim in the afternoon.
It was only by late Tuesday afternoon that the first body was fished out of the water in Kusimkolgre area, while the body of the second child was found further downstream near Warima.
Absence of rain had caused a brief reduction in the water level of the river and aided the efforts of the search teams.
There is concern over the rising cases of drowning in Garo Hills and many feel that widespread awareness is urgently required about the dangers posed to children and young adults, many of whom are unable to swim.
East Garo Hills Deputy Commissioner Swapnil Tembe, while speaking to The Shillong Times, said that an advisory against swimming during monsoon season has been in place for a long time.
“Before the onset of the monsoon season, we had conducted a drone survey of all flood-vulnerable areas and also identified the deep water locations which people have been asked to avoid. We are going to set up more warning points”, informed the deputy commissioner.
With the rainy season still two months away from its retreat, authorities in the Garo Hills are bracing for any eventuality.
Already eight lives – four children in Tikrikilla, two adults in Resubelpara and two children in Williamnagar – have been lost to nature’s fury.
