Six children lost their lives in separate drowning incidents across Chittagong, Brahmanbaria, and Gaibandha on Saturday.
In Chittagong’s Lohagara upazila, twin brothers drowned after falling into a pond around 2pm at Haridar Ghona Pallaner Para village in Ward-2 of Barahatia union, reports Bangla Tribune.
The deceased, identified as four-year-old twins Abir Hossain and Adil Hossain, sons of Azizul Haque Majhi, were confirmed dead by local Union Parishad (UP) Member Mamunur Rashid Chowdhury.
Quoting family members, Mamunur said the twins were playing near their house when they accidentally fell into a pond.
When their relatives couldn’t find them, they began searching and eventually discovered the bodies floating in the water, he said.
The children were rushed to a local private hospital, where doctors declared them dead, he added.
Lohagara police station's Officer-in-Charge (OC) Rabiul Alam Khan told Bangla Tribune: “Two children died from drowning. Since the family did not file any complaint, permission for burial was granted.”
In a separate incident in Nasirnagar upazila of Brahmanbaria, two more children drowned in a pond around noon on Saturday at Kunda village in Kunda union, casting a pall of grief over the area.
The deceased were identified as Taskia Akhter, 5, daughter of Md Mafikul Mia of Kunda village, and Tara Noor, 4, daughter of Delwar Hossain from Dhanatolia village in Chatlapar union.
The two were cousins, and Tara Noor was visiting her aunt’s house in Kunda at the time of the incident.
According to family members, the children were playing near the pond around 11am while Taskia’s mother was doing household chores nearby.
When the children went missing, relatives began searching for them. Their disappearance was also announced via the local mosque’s loudspeaker.
Around 12pm, a neighbor spotted their bodies floating in the pond.
They were taken to Nasirnagar Upazila Health Complex, where doctors pronounced them dead.
Dr Saiful Islam, the residential medical officer at the health complex, said: “The risk of such accidents increases during the monsoon season. Parents need to be more vigilant.”
Nasirnagar police station’s OC Md Khairul Alam said: “As there was no complaint, the bodies were handed over to the families. An unnatural death (UD) case will be filed.”
Meanwhile, in Gaibandha’s Palashbari upazila, two more children drowned in a rainwater-filled ditch near their home while playing on a makeshift raft made of banana trees.
The victims were identified as Abid Mia, 6, son of Shafiqul Islam, and Labib, 7, son of Abdul Aziz, both from Bairi Horinmari village in Palashbari municipality.
According to family sources, the children were playing on the raft in the ditch when they fell into the water and drowned.
Around 2:30pm, their floating bodies were recovered by relatives.
Palashbari police station’s OC Zulfikar Ali Bhutto said: “Upon receiving the news, police were dispatched to the spot. The children were playing unsupervised and tragically drowned. Parents must be more aware to prevent such incidents.”
