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Birthday Picnic Ends In Tragedy
By Mohammad Abdullah

Bandar Seri Begawan - Tragedy struck a group of foreign workers, mostly Filipinos, yesterday afternoon at the Berakas Forest Reserve in which two lost their lives at sea and one went missing while another lies in critical condition at RIPAS Hospital.

Police and Fire & Rescue personnel rushed to the scene to search for four people who went missing at sea, receiving an emergency call at about 2.30pm.

One of the drowned victims was identified as a Filipino woman, Maria Estella Pancho Lopez, 21. She and her friends had gone on a group outing at the Berakas Forest Reserve.

They were said to be celebrating a birthday at the beachfront.

Those who had witnessed the tragedy said a group of them had decided to take a swim. Four then took a dip in the rough waters. However, they did not anticipate the strong tide and currents that run in the area and apparently in just five minutes, all four were swept out to sea. Their friends onshore immediately called for help when they noticed the foursome in trouble in the water.

The others in the group were shocked

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and distraught at the unbelievable incident that had unfolded before their very eyes. As the tragic incident progressed, they were helpless to act as their friends were pulled under by the rough seas.

Rescue officials had pulled three bodies out of the water, a young man and two young women, all in their early twenties. They managed to revive one woman from the sea using CPR and who was rushed to the emergency room and is undergoing treatment at the Intensive Care Unit. She was later identified as Violeta Apote.

Meanwhile, another young woman, also a Filipino learnt to be Maralla Raya, was still lost at sea, and the Fire and Rescue officials had been scouring the shoreline as well as the waters to locate her. Navy divers were also on hand to help out in the rescue.

Due to the rough tide and strong currents, it is feared that the young woman has a slim chance of survival. But the rescue services have not given up hope and the search for the missing woman is on.

While Search and Rescue was searching from a high vantage point, other rescue officials were combing the long beach, in the hope of locating the missing woman.

"It is difficult to locate her with the turbulent sea, and the strong current may have carried her off a lot faster than anticipated. We still haven't given up hope," said a rescue official.

The name of the other victim has not been released but the Sunday Bulletin was informed that the man was a Malaysian national.

Meanwhile, Forestry officials said the Berakas Forestry Reserve will be closed until further notice due to the incident; to help police facilitate and isolate the accident scene for investigations.

Following the incident, police have advised the public not to shim at any beaches as the sea condition is dangerous. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

Brunei Times Version: Berakas Beach Tragedy: 2 Die, 1 Missing

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