4 teens drown in Bulacan river

CITY OF MALOLOS, Bulacan — A river in Norzagaray town swelled on rainless Tuesday and its strong current swept away and drowned four teenagers, police said.

A group of rescuers, policemen and soldiers recovered the bodies of Christian Palen, 15, and Butch Harold, 16, from the Bakas River in the village of Matictic at 7 a.m. Wednesday, a day after they were reported missing, said Supt. Joel Estares, Norzagaray police chief.

Their companions, Lovely Lacaba and Nelson Gobin, both 18, drowned on Tuesday but their bodies were recovered immediately. Three others were rescued on Tuesday.

The victims were residents of San Jose del Monte City. They went swimming in the river at 2:45 p.m. Tuesday.

Estares said it was not raining when the incident happened and investigators were checking if the sudden rise in water level was due to discharge from the Angat Dam.

The Bakas River is part of the Angat River system in Norzagaray. It is a popular destination in Bulacan known for its clean water and rock formations. CDG