ILOILO CITY, Philippines – Two students drowned as they were swimming at a waterfall in Lambunao, Iloilo last Friday.
Mica Angelica Cornelia, 18, and Renalyn Libuna, 19, both of the West Visayas State University, were reportedly swept away by the current at around 5 p.m.
Rescuers found Cornelia an hour after the incident while Libuna’s body was recovered at around 6 a.m. the next day.
Cornelia was declared dead on arrival at the Dr. Ricardo Ladrido Memorial District Hospital in Lambunao.
Reports said the victims were swimming with seven of their friends at Montillano Falls in Barangay Pasig, when it rained hard. Witnesses said the water rose suddenly, making it difficult for the students to swim to safety.
Meanwhile in Isabela, members of a rescue team have been searching for two children, who went missing as they were swimming in a river in Ilagan City Saturday.
Mico Bayucan and Daniel Christopher Maglelong, both 10 years old, reportedly skipped a Saturday class and decided to take a dip in the Cagayan River in Barangay Naguillian Norte, said Isabela police director Senior Superintendent Sotero Ramos Jr.
A village official who found the children’s clothes and personal belongings along the riverbank reported the incident to the authorities. – With Raymund Catindig