Three boys roughhousing on a bicycle as they pedaled home from school fell into a rain-swollen canal in Kompong Chhnang province, killing two, while the third was swept away, but grabbed a tree branch and climbed to safety, officials said.
The two boys who drowned on Wednesday—Chea Phanith, 9, and Yin Narong, 10— were fourth-grade students at Reaksmei Samakie elementary school, Rolea Ba’ier district governor Sorm Voeun said on Thursday.
The three students had finished their school chores at about 8:30 a.m. and fell into the canal in the district’s Chrey Bakk commune while playing around on the bike, commune chief Tang Bun Tort said.
The 9-year-old’s body was found on Wednesday afternoon, while the 10-year-old’s body was found on Thursday morning, Mr. Bun Tort said.
“The victims’ families are in great sorrow,” he said.
The survivor, Run Reah, 10, was a fifth-grader at the school. Hun Sul, principal of the school, said he had advised students the day before the drownings to be careful around the flooded canals.
