The search for the body of a boy who is believed to have drowned in the Doyang Reservoir (Wokha), Nagaland, is being undertaken by teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF). This search operation has continued on Sunday after Saturday’s accident where a 26-year-old man, Yilobemo Kikon from Pangti village, is believed to have died due to falling from a canoe into the water. Due to the depth of the Doyang reservoir (about 300 feet), it has created difficulties for the teams to search for the victim, where they are uncertain where the accident happened.
Rescue teams have used many search patterns in their efforts to find the victim. There were two deep diving teams sent into the water and used different patterns of searching such as circling the boat while producing surface turbulence so they can have better visibility. In addition, the rescue teams could not stay under water very long due to the cold water temperatures.
Phuleswar Lahon, Assistant Commandant of 12 National Disaster Response Force (12 NDRF) in Itanagar, stated that despite searching for over a day on Sunday, they were unable to locate and retrieve the body due to the uncertain location of the victim in addition to being hampered by cold water temperatures. Lahon added that they had to cease operations as of 4 PM Sunday. An eyewitness did state that they witnessed the victim fall into the water when they were out paddling, but did not make a note of where precisely the victim fell.
The NDRF continues searching on Monday with NDRF seeking assistance in deploying an underwater drone to assist them in their additional search efforts.
