Six schoolgirls were drown at a section of the Hong (Red) River located in Trang Viet Commune in Hanoi’s Me Linh District on Friday afternoon after they had rowed a small boat to pluck flowers in the river.
A section of the Red River where 6 school-girls found dead on September 2. Photo: Tuoi Tre
The victims all were born in 2000 and were 6th graders at Trang Viet junior high-school.
At the time of the drowning, local police and residents had rushed to the river to attempt their rescue but failed to save them.
The perished were identified as Nguyen Thi Thom, Vuong Thi Huong, Tran Thi Hue, Ngo Thi Hang, and Le Thi Mai.
Police said after conducting some initial investigations that a group of 11 6th-grade school-girls had attended a birthday party and then rowed a small boat to gather water-fern flowers in the river when they met with the deadly accident.
Local authorities have offered VND8 million (US$400) to each family of the dead.
Families and villagers shed tears and grieved at the death of six schoolgirls at their funerals.
