A child aged seven from Ermoclia village of Stefan Voda district drowned in a local pond on August 13. He went to swim together with his elder brother aged 12.

Ermoclia investigation officer Eugen Batir has told IPN that the boy was under the supervision of his elder brother as their mother works abroad. Their father wasn’t at home at that time. It’s not known if the brothers went swimming with or without permission. The body was recovered in several hours. The pond is not monitored by rescuers.

The head of the press service of the Civil Protection and Emergencies Service Liliana Puscasu has told IPN that eight children drowned in the lakes and ponds of Moldova so far this summer. She recommended the parents not to leave the children unsupervised near water and not to allow them to swim accompanied by minors.

According to Liliana Puscasu, twice more children drowned last year. A contribution was made by the drowning prevention campaign launched at the beginning of this summer.

According to a study of the REPEMOL Project “Regionalization of the pediatric emergency and intensive care services in Moldova” - 66% of the parents do not realize the risks of drowning/hurting to which the children left unsupervised are exposed.