By Sade Adewale
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A 19-year-old student of Owena Community Grammar School, Owena, Mwafor Emmanuel, has reportedly drowned while swimming at Owena river on Monday.
This incident has thrown the entire Ondo East local government into mourning, The Hope Metro gathered.
It was learnt that the deceased who was an SSS 2 student went to the river behind his school to swim while he left his uniform and school sandal at the bank of the river.
One of the students who had gone to the river to play was said to have noticed uniforms and school sandals by the side of the river.
He alerted the school authority, while the school reported the case at Bolorunduro Police division.
According to an eye witness, Mr Ujoma Eze, who spoke with our correspondent, the boy went swimming and died inside the river, saying this is not the first time of swimming there.
The community has done the ritual and he has been buried by the side of the river according to tradition.
“It was a painful incident and a sad moment for the family of the deceased. He was the first son and he was loved by the villagers. We will miss him dearly,”he stated.
Speaking with The Hope Metro, Mayowa Adeleyo one of the deceased’s friends explained that he (Mafor) had been swimming in the river before he met his untimely death.
“What happened that claimed the life of my friend in the process of swimming, I don’t know, because he went alone. We went to swim together in the afternoon during the long break. But on that day, I decided not to go because my mind did not go and I also warned him not to go, but he did not listen to me,” Adeleyo said.
Also speaking, one of the chief priests that worship the river, Osungbemi Alade said “the river doesn’t get angry but what happened that claim the life of the boy I don’t know due to that we will consult an oracle to know what happen and how to go about it.
Meanwhile, details of the incident which claimed the life of the deceased remained sketchy as of the time of filing this report.
Efforts to speak with security personnel and the parents proved abortive as the entire community was thrown into agony and confusion.
