5 swept away while bathing in Tungabhadra near Mantralayam in Andhra Pradesh

Tirupati: Five persons, who went for a swim in Tungabhadra river near Mantrralayam on Saturday afternoon, were swept away by the strong currents, leading to a pall of gloom in the area. Among the deceased was a five-year-old boy.Preliminary police investigation revealed that a group of around 10 family members and relatives, who came to attend a family function and a Satyanarayana Puja at Mantralayam, decided to go for a leisure swim in the nearby Tungabhadra river. After the group reached the river, six ventured into the waters while the rest waited on the riverbank. Within moments, all six were swept away by the strong currents after they reportedly misjudged the water depth.While Aparna from Adoni had a miraculous escape, the other five were washed away and are feared to have drowned. The deceased were identified as Satish (35) and Yuvan Chandra (5) from Hyderabad, Raghavendra (25) and Dhanu (23) from Mantralayam, and Sandhya (22) from Uravakonda. The lone survivor of the tragedy was Aparna.After their relatives on the shore sounded an alert, Mantralayam police, led by circle inspector Dasthagiri, rushed to the spot along with expert swimmers and launched a rescue operation. Local fishermen familiar with the water terrain also joined the rescue mission. No bodies could be retrieved till late on Saturday. Police said the rescue operations will continue throughout the night.