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John Unson - The Philippine Star
April 18, 2026 | 12:00am
The five children drowned in a water pond in Marawi City on Thursday, April 16, 2026, are all from Maranao families and were immediately buried according to Islamic tradition of burying the dead within 24 hours after death.
Philstar.com / John Unson
COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Five children drowned while swimming in a pond in Marawi, Lanao del Sur on Thursday.
The fatalities including two girls were declared dead on arrival in a nearby hospital. They were identified as Rania Tucal, 11; Norol-Iman, 10, and Salah Nasif, 7, as well as Neshren, 11, and Rahman, 7.
The victims, along with their friend, Fatma Nur Nasif, 8, were last seen swimming in the pond in Barangay Panoroganan.
Capt. Steffie Salanguit, spokesperson for the Bangsamoro police, said the children had spotted a doorless refrigerator floating in the pond.
The victims rode in the refrigerator and paddled toward a deeper portion of the pond where the appliance flipped over, Salanguit said.
The children tried to swim back toward the shallow part of the pond, but they drowned.
