Police: 2 people drown in Agusan del Norte floods

BUTUAN CITY — A 70 year old farmer drowned after being swept by strong river current, while a seven-year-old boy was found floating in a creek in Tubay town in Agusan del Norte province, police reports said Saturday. A report from the Caraga Police Regional Information Office identified the farmer as Ricarte Morales Ganzan, 70, and a resident of Binuangan village in Tubay. Meanwhile, the Tubay police identified the seven-year-old boy as Reyan Flores Bahan, a resident of Barangay Doña Rosario in the same town. Police said the 70 year old farmer was found floating in the sea off Barangay Binuangan, some 68 kilometers away from Butuan City. Binuangan Barangay Captain Danny Garcia, together with his men, found Ganzan’s body around 9:24 a.m. Friday. Ganzan’s wife sought the help of barangay officials after her husband failed to return home Thursday. She told the police her husband left home despite heavy rains and went to the family’s farm around 5:00 a.m., adding her husband had to cross two rivers before reaching there. She claimed she started to be worried after her husband failed to return home that day. Rescue teams suspected Ganzan was swept away by a river’s strong current when he tried to cross. On the other hand, the boys’ body was found floating in Kalooy Creek about 2:00 p.m. Friday, authorities said. An initial police investigation showed the boy went missing since Thursday evening, after he was last seen walking towards Kalooy Creek around 4 p.m. amid heavy rains. Police said witnesses claimed they saw the boy crossed the creek which was usually shallow. The boy’s body was found 1,000 meters away from the area where he was last seen crossing the creek. Tubay police have ruled out foul play in both deaths. — Ben Serrano/LBG, GMANews.TV