2 girls drown in pool prank

MANILA, Philippines - Two girls drowned after they sneaked into a total stranger’s house in Barangay Pasong Tamo, Quezon City so they could swim in the pool there over the weekend.

Rica Mae Catap, 11, and Ken Natalie Andoy, 12, were residents of a slum community in the same barangay, according to Senior Police Officer 1 Cristituto Zaldarriaga.

The incident happened at past 5 p.m. Sunday at the swimming pool of Mariano Soriano but was reported Monday night, Zaldarriaga said.

Soriano’s family said they do not know the children who, along with several of their friends, scaled the fence so they could get to the pool.

One of the children, Christine Emmadem, said one of her friends, a certain Umina, suddenly pushed Catap into the pool. When Andoy saw Catap asking for help, she reached out her hand but got dragged into the pool instead.

Francis Mariazata, Soriano’s son-in-law, told police he was surprised to see two children – later idenfied as Umina and Emmadem – rushing out of the house through the gate, which could only be opened only from the inside.

When Mariazata went to the swimming pool, he found Catap and Andoy floating in the water. He brought up the two girls from the pool and administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

The two girls were rushed to Quezon City General Hospital but were declared dead on arrival, police said.