The body of an 8-year-old boy who drowned in Calumpit town was found in waters near Manila Bay on Tuesday, Aug. 25, according to a report received by the Bulacan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO).
Ran Romy Ortillano reportedly drowned in a river in Barangay Iba O’ Este, Calumpit, on Sunday, Aug. 23. His body was found floating off the island barangay of Masukol in Paombong town at around 5:10 a.m., PDRRMO head Manuel Lukban Jr. said.
The victim was identified through his clothing and physical features.
According to Enriquito Santiago Jr., head of the Calumpit Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, Ortillano went to the river at around 5 p.m. to look for river snails, or kuhol. He was standing near the riverbank when he accidentally slipped and fell into the water.
His 49-year-old neighbor, Jonie Soronio, immediately dove into the river to rescue him. Soronio managed to grab the boy and swim with him on his back, but the strong current caused him to lose his grip.
Other residents joined the rescue effort and tried to push the boy toward the riverbank, but the strong current eventually swept him away.
Backflow from Pampanga and the mountainous areas of Bulacan has kept Calumpit under about 5 feet of floodwater.
Amid the southwest monsoon, or habagat, and typhoons Maymay and Luis, Calumpit was placed under a state of calamity on Aug. 10.