Students caught in river as dam gates open

MANGALURU: Eleven students from a private college in Bantwal were saved from drowning on Wednesday after they were caught unawares by sudden flow of water from a dam nearby. Dam authorities said they had sounded a siren before releasing water, as is the practice, but the youngsters ignored the warning.

The PU students set out in the morning to swim and bathe in the river as Wednesday was a public holiday and there were no classes. They crossed the shallow Nethravati river and began swimming. The river was not very deep and the students were playing in the water. Around 2.30pm, they decided to return home. As they began to cross the river, the water level rose suddenly. The students were caught in the middle. Five of them managed to swim to the shore while the rest struggled with the flow. They held onto a rock in the middle of the river and began screaming for help. Their classmates helplessly watched from the shore, unsure of what to do. Time appeared to be running out as the current showed no signs of slowing.

Police said water was released between 1.30pm and 2pm. The students’ cries for help were heard by locals of Navoor panchayat who swiftly reached with ropes and rescued them one by one.

Authorities said the gush of water was from AMR dam in Navoor which was opened in the afternoon to release excess water. A siren was sounded but the students apparently ignored it, police said. The site where water was released is barely a kilometre from where the students were playing.