Teenager drowns while playing in floodwaters in Udon Thani

A 15 year old student drowned after playing in floodwaters with friends, jumping off a bridge and being swept away by a strong current. The tragic incident occurred in Ban Lao, Udon Thani province, yesterday, August 20.

Weerapol Raksaemawong, an administrator of the Ban Dung Update page, received a distress call about a child drowning at the bridge in Ban Lao, moo 8, Ban Lao subdistrict, Phen district, Udon Thani. This area is situated between the Phen and Ban Dung districts.

Upon receiving the report, Weerapol coordinated with the VR Ban Dung rescue team and headed to the scene with a team of divers and necessary diving equipment. Methatham Foundation and Songsermtham Foundation officers from Udon Thani, Nong Han Point, also joined the rescue efforts.

On arrival, it was confirmed that the missing child was named Lim. Lim’s grandfather lit incense, praying for the spirits to open the way and find Lim quickly. The area where Lim went missing had strong and swift-flowing waters, compounded by continuous rainfall, reported KhaoSod.

One of Lim’s friends recounted that four of them were heading home after school. They passed over a concrete bridge, which was submerged due to the heavy flow of water. The group decided to play in the water by jumping into it repeatedly. Although this was a regular activity, this time Lim appeared to struggle in the water, said one of his unnamed friends.

“We saw Lim jump into the water and immediately noticed he was struggling. He shouted for help, saying, ‘Help me! I’m tired!’ I jumped in to assist him, but the current was too strong. Lim was caught in a deep channel, trying unsuccessfully to swim against the current. Exhausted, he disappeared right before my eyes.”

Initially, the diving team spread out to search for Lim’s body but faced difficulties due to the strong, turbulent currents. Just as the search was about to be called off, the team found Lim’s body several 100 metres away from where he had initially disappeared.

Lim’s body was then transported to the shore for a detailed post-mortem examination.