The children who breathed their last at a nearby community hospital have been identified as Elina Kumal, 13, her sister Melina, 13, and their cousin, Susan, 15.Elina and Melina are the daughters of Lila Bahadur Kumal while Susan is the son of Lila Bahadur´s brother Gopi. [break]
The cousins were happy swimming at the shallow water of the local Ulti River, according to the eye-witnesses. But their merriment soon turned into a nightmare after they swam towards the middle of the river--oblivious of the deadly current following overnight downpour.
"Melina was first to be swept way. When the other two saw this, they tried to rescue her, only to be caught in the current," said Amar Budhathoki, Assistant Sub Inspector of Police, a member of the rescue team. "Locals who heard the drowning children crying for help approached us for the assistance. Sadly, however, we couldn´t rescue them on time."
The locals, who had seen the children crying for help, remained mute spectators as the river had swollen to a dangerous level following the overnight rain, the police added.
When a police team from Kolhuwa post took the children out of the river they were already unconscious. They breathed their last while undergoing treatment at Madhya Bindu community hospital at Danda.
Meanwhile, a dead body has found at Tikauli forest at Ratnanagar in Chitwan. According to police, the deceased has been identified as Pradip Pariyar, 25, of Ghyalchok in Gorkha. Pariyar was a bus driver. Initial investigation has shown that Pariyar had consumed poison.
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