A man in his 50s and two young boys drowned in Akita Prefecture, police said Monday.
According to police, the two young boys, aged 5 and 9, were swimming at a beach in Oga when they were swept out to sea by the current at around 5 p.m. on Sunday. TV Asahi reported that a man in his 50s swam out in an attempt to rescue the boys, but he also got into difficulty and went under.
The three victims were pulled out of the water by a fisherman and taken to hospital where they were confirmed dead, police said.
Police say the three were part of a 10-person group attending a barbecue at the beach.
© Japan Today
14 Comments
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House Atreides
It looks like they got caught up in a rip current.
Very sad. RIP.
Dukeleto
What a selfless act of bravery, very courageous. May they all rest in peace.
Realistic
Brave man!
RIP all three! This tells us that nothing is secure when it comes to mother nature! Be careful always!
Fadamor
Rip currents don't just appear at random. Certain beaches - because of their location in relation to prevailing winds - will get the rip currents and there should be warnings posted on those beaches to that effect.
A sad ending to what was supposed to have been a fun outing.
JeffLee
The man didn't know what he was doing. It's extremely difficult to rescue people without using floating objects. If you just grab someone, you both go under, that's why multiple drownings are so common.
In the Hollywood movies, the hero quickly dives in the water. But that's stupid. In reality, the hero would first find a boat, raft, lifejacket, or floatation item, etc. before going in.
Apparently it's because the Japanese fear deep water, and lakes tend to lack shallow areas. I've never seen a deep end at a public pool here. But if you can swim in deep water, then lakes would be a lot safer.
Elbuda Mexicano
All the laws in he world will not help if common folk do not have any common sense!! Why let 2 small kids play by the sea without any adult supervision?? Too busy getting drunk?? Stupid stupid parents!!!!!!!
suehuang
That so sad why parents leave their kid swimming alone. And can you imaging 5 and 9 years old kid. they don't understand the way of safety much.
ambrosia
Whenever I read stories about people drowning because of rip tides it makes me wonder why so many of my Japanese friends say that lakes are dangerous places in which to swim.
Nessie
Japanese are not used to being out of their depth.
Mirai Hayashi
A 5 and a 9 year old? Where the hell were the parents?
Aristoman
Good bye brave man. Swimming vests please.
Waxman
Mirai... It was a BBQ party, ofcourse the ignorant parents must be enjoying beer n beef as the kids swam away! Just a bad accident!! RIP all
noriyosan73
Mandatory swimming proficiency in PE classes. A law that requires children to wear life jackets would also help.
smithinjapan
Was the kind man, RIP, who went out to save them part of the BBQ? If not, what were the people at the BBQ doing not watching the kids?