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Six Malaysian rescue divers drown in bid to save boy
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 4, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Six Malaysian rescue divers drowned
in a freak accident while searching for a boy who had gone missing in a pool
at an abandoned tin mine, emergency officials said Thursday.
The 17-year-old boy had gone missing Wednesday while fishing in the pool
popular with anglers in the township of Puchong west of the capital Kuala
Lumpur.
Mohammad Hamdan Wahid, fire and rescue department director-general, said
the divers encountered strong undercurrents that spun them around in the
murky water.
Local police chief Abdul Aziz Ali said the spinning caused them to lose
their diving gear.
They were pulled out of the water after 30 minutes but by then they were
already unconscious, he added.
Fire chief Mohammad described the death of six officers in one day as the
“worst tragedy” to hit his department.
The search for the missing youth was continuing, he said.
BSS/AFP/IJ/1455 hrs