Two children drowned on Tuesday afternoon when a vallam carrying their family capsized in the lagoon at Kurakkanhena, Kalpitiya, police said.
The victims were a seven-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl.
Preliminary investigations indicate the family had taken the small fishing boat out to collect their nets when it overturned. The children’s father was pulled from the water and admitted to Puttalam Hospital for treatment.
Kalpitiya Police are continuing investigations into the incident.
Second drowning in Kayts division
In a separate incident, a 52-year-old man drowned while bathing in the sea off Charty beach in Velanai, within the Kayts Police Division. Police said the man was a resident of Kokkuvil.
Kayts Police have begun an investigation.
Drownings remain a persistent cause of accidental death in Sri Lanka, and the government has been working to put a national prevention mechanism in place, with the Coast Guard chairing a dedicated committee on the issue.
