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DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 14 April) – Authorities recovered the bodies of three minors who drowned off San Juan Village, Barangay Centro in Agdao District, on Saturday, hours after they were reported missing by their families, Capt Hazel Tuazon, spokesperson of the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) said.
In a report released on Sunday, Tuazon said that based on investigation, the minors, who were residents and neighbors in Barangay Centro, were playing outside their homes around 2 p.m. when their family members noticed they were missing.
She said the older brother of one of the minors looked for his younger sibling along the shore where he found his brother’s pair of slippers.
She added that it was around 6 pm when relatives went to seek assistance in the Barangay Hall for the search and rescue operation of the missing minors.
She said personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard and Davao City Central 911 Search and Rescue team immediately launched a joint search and retrieval operation.
She said the body of the four-year-old boy was seen floating near the construction area of the coastal road at 9:45 p.m. and was immediately rushed to the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) where he was declared dead on arrival.
At 9:56 p.m. rescue teams retrieved the body of a seven-year-old boy along the seashore of San Jose Ipil Beach in Barangay Duterte and at 10:25 p.m., the body of another seven-year-old boy was found under the stilt houses in the same area. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)