A 17-year-old girl drowned in the Nistru River in Tiraspol on Thursday evening, about 300 meters from the ferryboat, IPN reports.

The rescue services in Tiraspol said that the young woman and a friend of her aged 16 went to spend time in the company of two young men aged 22 and 23 respectively. They drank alcoholic beverages together. One of the men remained on the shore to make fire for the barbecue, while the other one entered the water with the girls.

At one point, the gang went too far into the water. The 17-year-old girl, who didn’t know to swim, no longer felt the ground under her feet and panicked. She tried to grab the 23-year-old man by the neck, but they started both to go down. The young man later said that he barely managed to surface. He was able to push only the 16-year-old girl to the shore. The other girl disappeared underwater.

Once they reached the shore, they alerted the specialized services. Divers recovered the body of the drowned girl seven meters from the place where she was taken by the water.

Rescuers warn the people to choose only places designed for swimming, where there are rescuers on duty. Drinking alcoholic beverages before entering the water is extremely dangerous. Blood pressure can change suddenly and cause dizziness or loss of consciousness. Reactions are also delayed and the chances of saving the person are thus reduced.