Three children drown in Lagdo River

The families of Yonki Jacques and Sani Ngoma at Lagdo are inconsolable. On July 17, 2015, three of their children died while taking their bath in the Lagdo River.

One of the three bodies was found on the same day while the other two were found the following day around 11:00am.

“It was between 13 hours (1:00pm) and 14 hours (2:00pm) that we were informed that they went to the other side of the river to bathe. We rushed to the scene and that's when we managed to fish out the body of Dadi, barely ten. She was accompanied by four other children of her age group. Three drowned. The remains of Jean Amadou and Avoutang were recovered on July 18 around 11:00 am. You would not know what to say when such a misfortune knocks on your door," said a family member named Ngoma.

The five children left the homes of their parents at noon on July 17. Thus, Bada, Atiki, Dadi, Avoutang and Jean Amadou went to the river adjacent to the Lagdo Dam and everything went smoothly from the outset.

However, around 1:00pm the survivors, Bada and Atiki, alerted their parents that their friends were drowning. The inhabitants mobilized themselves and organized a rescue team.

The lifeless body of Dadi was found and given to the family. The search continued until late evening. The families of Yonki Jacques and Sali Ngoma still hoped to see their children alive. Fishermen mobilized for the search were not of much help. On July 18, at approximately 11:00, the bodies of Avoutang and Amadou Jean were found.

"It seemed miraculous. Fishermen and divers searched the river for hours without finding the bodies. Around 11 am the next day, the bodies of two unfortunate children resurfaced on the water," said Djouldé, a resident of Lagdo.

Informed about the situation, the district deputy and the Lagdo brigade commander of the gendarmerie arrived on the scene. An investigation was immediately opened by the territorial Lagdo gendarmerie brigade to determine the circumstances of the drowning.