Second body found near man who drowned in kayak accident

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The body of the man who drowned after his kayak capsized in the Lower Seletar Reservoir on Sunday was found at 11.15 am on Monday.

But just two and a half hours later, a second body was found floating near the Yishun Jetty.

Search operations for 32-year-old Khoka Mohammed Burhan, an engineer from India, had resumed at 7am.

And some 24 hours after he went missing underwater in the Lower Seletar Reservoir, his body was found.



It was partially submerged - about 50 metres from where his kayak capsized on Sunday, and some 100 metres from the shore near the Orchid Country Club.

The search had involved 17 divers from the Naval Diving Unit, the Civil Defence force, and the police.

Captain Raihan Rafiek, Officer-In-Charge, Yishun Fire Station, Singapore Civil Defence Force, said, "It's not as simple as what it seems to be. There is a lot of undergrowth in the water itself and that slowed down our search and rescue operation as we sent divers in."

MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC Lee Bee Wah came to offer help and comfort to Mr Khoka's wife - 27-year-old Madam Noorliza Yahya - and her family.

The couple loved water sports and Sunday's canoeing trip was their second outing at the reservoir.

Ms Lee said, "It is a very tragic accident, very sudden. The wife is very strong. The family is very strong. I have spoken to them. At the moment, they do not require any financial help.

"They will arrange to go for Haj after this. They want to take a break. The water centre, the paddle centre has already stopped operation, and PA is looking into whether there's anything else that we can do better in order to prevent similar accidents."

Just as the search team was leaving, a passer-by at the reservoir made a grisly discovery - the body of an Indian woman was floating near the Yishun Jetty.

Nurzatiman Astha said, "When I saw the body there, it was like a quarter submerged. She was wearing this red dress with white pokka dots. Her feet were slightly wrinkled.

"She may have fallen off. Because this is like mud at the bottom of the area. It's very obvious. There couldn't be anything you could be doing here, other than to fish. It was very deserted."

Police said the woman was in her sixties and are investigating how she fell into the water. - CNA/ms

Labels: Drown