KOTA KINABALU - An elderly woman in the Kinabatangan district of Sabah, Malaysia, has been found dead, entangled in a fishing net.

Ms Ria Tagunggu, 75, was said to have left her house in Kampung Sinar Jaya for net fishing on Feb 3, and failed to return home, said Kinabatangan Fire Station chief Nurul Azlan Shah Jamalludin on Feb 4.

He said her body was later found stuck in some fishing nets at around 12.30pm on Feb 4.

When contacted, he said: “We received a call to help get a body stuck in nets out of the river. It is unclear what happened, but there are no initial signs of wounds or animal attacks on the victim.”

Chief Nurul said the body was retrieved from the net and handed over to the police for further action. Operations ceased at 1.38pm.

Meanwhile, in Lahad Datu – another district in Sabah – a teenager drowned during a swimming trip with friends at Sepagaya waterfall on Feb 4.

Mr Mohd Syaiful Romeo, 18, drowned at around 10.30am, said Lahad Datu Fire Station chief Sumsoa Rashid when contacted.

“A search operation was mounted for the boy involving agencies such as the police, Forestry Department and Health Ministry, and his body was finally found at around 1pm,” he said.

Chief Sumsoa said the body was retrieved from the waterfall area and handed over to the police for further action.

He advised parents to be watchful of their children’s activities and also reminded the public to temporarily stop all water-related outings, including fishing during the rainy season.

He said two other children also drowned during swimming outings in Lahad Datu on Feb 2, and that this could have been averted if everyone was a little more careful and alert. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK