Mum, kids killed in river rescue

By DOROTHY MARK
A MOTHER and her two children died after the dinghy they were in capsized in rough seas near Madang, says an official, while nine others were rescued.
Twelve passengers, including women and children, boarded the dinghy in Wewak around 1pm on Thursday for Madang, said acting director of the Madang provincial disaster and emergency unit Rudolf Mongallee.
At around 6.45pm, the dinghy reached the mouth of the Ramu River in Madang and the skipper decided to steer the vessel into a river passage between Botbot and Kaian villages.
Mongallee said because they were having engine problems, one of the passengers called a relative at Kaian who immediately got on a boat to help them.
Mongallee said when the boat was approaching them, a huge wave crashed into the dinghy.
The nine passengers managed to reach the second boat but the mother, from Turubu in East Sepik, her two-year-old son and four-year-old daughter disappeared.
On Friday, the bodies of the two children were found on the beach at Kaian village.
The mother’s body was found floating near Boisa Island by some fishermen on Sunday.
She was buried on Monday near their home at Midiba outside Madang town. Mongallee urged dinghy operators to travel only during the day for the safety of their passengers.
“It is very dangerous to travel at night because you don’t know how far the land is or how big the waves are and what direction the waves are coming from,” he said.