TACLOBAN CITY — A 15-year-old boy staying at an orphanage center drowned in the waters off Barangay Lower Villa Jacinta, Macrohon, Southern Leyte, on New Year’s Day, authorities reported.
The victim, identified as alias “Kai,” a Grade 8 student and resident of Barangay Poblacion, Padre Burgos, was reported missing around 10:10 a.m., prompting a response from the Macrohon Municipal Police Station, report from the Regional Police Office(PRO-8), said.
Concerned residents alerted authorities after spotting the boy floating in the sea.
Personnel from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation while police coordinated with the Rural Health Unit (RHU) for medical assistance. Kai was eventually brought ashore with the help of a bystander but was declared dead by the RHU officer.
A social worker from the orphanage revealed that Kai had recently been suffering from epilepsy, which authorities are considering as a potential factor in the drowning.
(JOEY A. GABIETA)
