One-year-old boy drowns after falling into the sea in Lapu-Lapu City

A young boy drowns after falling into the sea in Barangay Mactan, Lapu-Lapu City, on Sunday, July 21. | Paul Lauro

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A one-year-old boy died after falling into the sea from the back of his uncle’s house in Barangay Mactan, Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, on Sunday morning, July 21.

While the boy was left unattended, he allegedly went to the back of the house and played near a door that led to the open sea.

Like most weekends, the boy’s family had left their house in Barangay Bankal to visit the father’s older brother in Barangay Mactan. The family spent most weekends bonding with their relatives. However, that particular Sunday turned out to be the last time the family of four would be complete. The tragic incident happened around 11 a.m.

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In an interview with local radio station dyHP, the victim’s mother, Kathleen, narrated that her eldest son had come from a swimming trip with his father and cousins early on Sunday morning.

She said that despite her son’s desire to continue swimming, they told him to stop so he wouldn’t get sick. When they got home shortly after, everyone went to different parts of the house to do their own errands. The baby’s parents, along with his aunts and uncles, reportedly thought he had stayed in the living room.

According to the boy’s uncle, Renante, he and the child’s father were in the kitchen preparing their lunch. Meanwhile, Kathleen was on the balcony, preoccupied with breastfeeding her youngest child, who was only two months old.

Renante said nobody noticed that the child had walked by himself to the back of the house. He said the child was probably playing near a door that led to the open sea, which had been left unlocked by children who forgot to lock it after swimming in the area.

When they noticed that the child was not in the living room, they began looking for him around the house. After 20 minutes of searching, a young child discovered the one-year-old floating in the water a few meters from the back of the house.

He was allegedly facing upwards and was not moving. The child’s father immediately picked him up from the water and rushed to bring him to the nearest hospital in an ambulance. However, when they arrived, they were told that the child was already dead.

The family believes the boy accidentally slipped while playing, causing him to fall into the deep water. As of this writing, the child’s wake is being held at their house while his loved ones continue to mourn his untimely death.