Second body found in case of 5 missing students on Red River

On the afternoon of November 19, Phu Tho Provincial Police said that the authorities had found the body of the second victim in the case of 5 students who went missing while swimming in the Red River alluvial area in Zone 1, Hien Quan Commune, Tam Nong District, Phu Tho.

The victim's body was found at 1:30 p.m. the same day downstream, about 2km from Phong Chau pontoon bridge, in zone 7, Huong Non commune, Tam Nong district.

Police are conducting autopsies and identifying the victims' families.

Initially, the family of the victim BKLA identified the body as BKLA (born in 2011).

At 3:50 p.m. on November 18, 10 students from Hien Quan Secondary School invited each other to go to the Red River bank in Zone 1, Hien Quan Commune to play. While playing, 6 students went swimming in the river (3 boys, 3 girls) and got into an accident. One student was able to swim to shore, 5 students went missing.

The missing students are all in 8th grade, including: TMD, HTTL, BKLA, HTD, LAD

At 7:00 p.m. on November 18, authorities found the body of the first female student.

Since yesterday, Phu Tho Provincial Police have coordinated with other forces and local authorities to search for the missing victims. The Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department, Phu Tho Provincial Police mobilized 2 rescue vehicles, 1 motorboat, 2 breathing apparatus for diving equipment, 2 life rafts, 10 life buoys, and 30 life jackets.

The provincial police also mobilized 35 officers and soldiers (a frogman team of 12 officers and soldiers with full specialized diving equipment) to coordinate with 2 canoes of the Waterway Police force to deploy 2 devices to search the riverbed from the area where the victims were in distress downstream.

"The provincial police forces must overcome all difficulties, urgently and actively deploy rescue measures, with great effort and determination to search for missing children, and ease the pain of the families," Colonel Nguyen Minh Tuan, Director of Phu Tho Provincial Police, directed.

Colonel Nguyen Minh Tuan also requested units to concentrate forces and means to search and rescue throughout the night, and carefully check each location on the river.

In addition, the Phu Tho Provincial Military Command mobilized 20 officers under the direct command of Colonel Tran Nho Luong - Deputy Commander, Chief of Staff of the Provincial Military Command. The unit mobilized 4 motorboats, 2 trucks, and established a field command post in Ha Thach commune, Phu Tho town.

The Phu Tho Town Military Command and Lam Thao District Military Command mobilized 40 officers and soldiers, including regular forces and militia, to participate in the search. The Phu Tho Town Party Committee and government were also present at the scene to coordinate and direct the search.