Three dental students drown in Kerala river; elderly man killed in buffalo attack

Three students of Mar Baselios Dental College tragically drowned on Sunday in the Palavanpadi River at Vadattupara near Kothamangalam while on a holiday outing.

The deceased have been identified as Bion from Thiruvalla, Harish from Thiruvananthapuram, and Atul from Kottayam. The incident occurred in the Palavanpadi River, a remote area near the forest downstream of the Idamalayar Dam.

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According to police, a group of nine students had gone to the river for a bath around noon on Sunday. One of the students reportedly slipped into a deep pocket of water and was caught in strong currents. The other two students were swept away while attempting to rescue him.

As the area is remote and lacks mobile network coverage, there was a delay in reporting the incident. Local residents, police personnel, and fire and rescue teams conducted a search operation for several hours before recovering the bodies. The students were rushed to a private hospital in Kothamangalam, where they were declared dead.

Local residents and officials of the Kuttampuzha Panchayat said the river is considered dangerous due to sudden surges in water levels when water is released from the Idamalayar Dam for power generation.

Although warning signs have reportedly been placed in high-risk areas, visitors often ignore them. The tragedy comes barely two weeks after three nursing students drowned in the same river.

In another tragic incident, a 74-year-old man, identified as Aboobacker N.A., died after being attacked by a buffalo at Kaippadamughal near Kalamassery in Kochi.

According to the police, the buffalo, which had been grazing in the area, suddenly turned violent and began damaging plants and trees around 7:45 pm on Saturday.

When Aboobacker attempted to control the animal, it attacked him and inflicted severe injuries to his chest, ribs, and legs. He was rushed to a hospital in Kochi but succumbed to his injuries during treatment on Sunday.