Father’s heartbreak as son drowns at dangerous overflow dam

A father is devastated after learning that his 15 year old son drowned at an overflow dam, despite having warned him in the morning not to go out and play. Friends recounted the tragic moment, noting that the boy, who was not a strong swimmer, slipped on algae-covered concrete near the bank.

At 5.30pm yesterday, Kasem Senaprakon, an officer from Bo Thong Police Station in Chon Buri Province, received a report of a drowning incident at the Nong Nam Khao overflow dam in Village No. 7, That Thong Subdistrict, Bo Thong District. The officer, along with rescue volunteers from Sawang Het Thung Hiang and a team of divers, promptly arrived at the scene.

The overflow dam, measuring 30 metres wide with a water depth of approximately 4 metres, was the site of the tragic event. A group of friends, visibly shaken, recounted that they had come to swim together. Three of them were strong swimmers and had ventured further from the bank.

However, the 15 year old boy, who struggled with swimming, stayed near the concrete bank, which had slippery algae. He eventually lost his footing and slipped into the dam. Efforts to rescue him by his friends were unsuccessful. One of the dead boy’s friends revealed what happened

“He was playing near the concrete bank, which was slippery with algae, and slowly slid into the middle of the overflow dam. We tried to help him, but we couldn’t.”

Divers searched for over 10 minutes before finding the boy’s body. The authorities coordinated with medical personnel for an autopsy amidst the grief of his friends and the father, who rushed to the scene upon hearing the tragic news.

The father shared that he had returned from selling goods at the Bo Thong market in the morning and had firmly instructed his son not to go out and play. He only found out around noon that his son had gone to swim with friends at the overflow dam, despite not being a strong swimmer, reported KhaoSod.

Tragically, the boy ended up drowning. Initially, officials sent the body to the hospital and began an investigation in accordance with the law before returning the body to the family for religious rites.