5 schoolgirls drown in central Vietnam

On Monday afternoon, informed that there were no classes, the five came to play at the spillway on Moc Khe River near their school.

As they failed to return home that evening, their families rushed to find them.

The girls’ bicycles and mobile phones were found on the river bank but there were no signs of them so their families assumed they might have drowned and reported them missing to police.

On Monday night, more than 30 police and tens of local people joined forces in the search along the river.

Around 3 a.m. Tuesday, the bodies of two girls were found in the river while the remaining three were found in the afternoon.

On Sunday, authorities in Hoa Hiep Commune of Xuyen Moc District in southern Ba Ria – Vung Tau Province confirmed that four girls that are all seventh graders in the commune had drowned while playing at Suoi Cat Lake in the commune.

In Vietnam, drowning remains one of the leading causes of death among children, according to the World Health Organization.

It was estimated in 2020 that more than 2,000 children aged under 16 years had lost their lives every year due to drowning in the country, the WHO said.