(COLOMBO) – A 17-year-old youth drowned while frolicking in flood waters with friends in Sri Lanka’s southern town of Baddegama on Wednesday, police said.
They said the victim was floating on an inflated rubber tube when a sudden gush of water threw him of the tube into the swollen river.
The victim was later dragged down the river in raging waters and subsequently drowned, police said.
The limp body was found several hours later by navy life guards and divers.
The youth was pronounced dead on admission to a regional Government hospital.
The authorities have repeatedly warned people against intentionally wading into flood waters for whatever reason due to the high risk of accidents.
The authorities said that floodwaters can be extremely dangerous, unpredictable, and capable of causing severe injuries or even fatalities.
At least 31 people have so far died and 18 others injured during the ongoing inclement weather that has rocked several places of the island-nation since mid May. (COPY ENDS)
