Another death at Lower Seletar Reservoir

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Body of 60-year-old woman found not far from where an Indian national drowned on Sunday.

In a shocking turn of events, a female body was spotted yesterday at Lower Seletar Reservoir shortly after the body of the man who went missing while kayaking was found.

The man was pulled out yesterday at 11.15am, nearly 24 hours after he disappeared into the murky waters, according to The Straits Times, while the 60-year-old woman was discovered at around 1.45pm.

The first body was later identified as that of Mr Khoka Mohammed Burhan, 32, an Indian national and a permanent resident working here. The police have not released the woman’s name but have classified her case as unnatural death.

Mr Khoka was in 2.5m-deep waters, about 100m from the shoreline in front of the Orchid Country Club. The SCDF officers pulled him out with the help of a diver from the Naval Diving Unit (NDU) of the Singapore Armed Forces.

The victim and his wife Noorliza Yahya, 27, had hired the kayak from the People's Association (PA) Water-Venture water sports outlet on Sunday before it capsized.

Mr Khoka then pushed his wife onto the capsized kayak, while he kept swimming in the water. It is believed that he ran out of strength and went under. His life jacket was recovered later.

Madam Noorliza struggled to steer the kayak towards the shore and waded onto an embankment where she called for help at about 12.15pm using a mobile phone belonging to a worker who was working on the golf course.

A search ensued but was called off at 8.30pm because of poor visibility and safety concerns. The search resumed again at 7am yesterday. Captain Raihan Rafiek, SCDF Officer Commanding from Yishun Fire Station, told The Straits Times: 'The search and rescue was not as simple as it seemed. We had to deal with a lot of undergrowth, which slowed down our operations.'

Mr Khoka moved here from Dubai where he was working, after he married Madam Noorliza, a Singaporean, last year. He had been working at a shipyard here.

The couple, who live with Madam Noorliza's parents in Yishun Ring Road, do not have any children.

Meanwhile, the rental of kayaks and canoes at the water-sports outlet, which is run by the PA, remains suspended. It was opened barely two weeks ago.

Labels: Drown