SALEM: Four, including two minors, died by drowning in two different incidents in Salem and Erode respectively. According to the police, two minors died by drowning in a lake near Kannankurichi in Salem on Saturday. The deceased were identified as Prasanth (17) and Balaji (16) from Govindasamy Colony in Kannankurichi.
"Prashant had just appeared for the Class 12 exams and Balaji studied in Class 11. Both of them went to bathe in the new Kannankurichi Lake with their friends on Saturday. Both of them went to take bath in the lake first, got stuck in the mud and drowned. The other boys called for help, following which the police and fire department rushed to the spot. After about two hours of search, the police recovered both their bodies. Both their bodies were sent to Salem Government Hospital. A case has been registered," police said. Similarly, two people died by drowning in Lower Bhavani Project (LBP) canal in Erode on Friday. The victims, identified as Rakkimuthu (47) and Sivakumar (37) from M Pappampatti near Mopperipalayam in Coimbatore, were weavers and had gone to Bhavanisagar for business on Friday.
They decided to take bath in the LBP canal on Friday evening after finishing their work. As 2,300 cusecs of water was released into the canal for irrigation on Friday, both of them were dragged into the water. Following information, Bhavanisagar police and firefighters from Sathyamangalam rushed to the spot and started searching for them. Rakkimuthu's body was found after a while, but Sivakumar's body has not been found till Saturday evening. Further investigation is on.