Three beach-goers missing since Friday, one girl found dead on Russian coast
Four people, including two children, were reported missing in Narva-Jõesuu on Friday evening in two separate cases. The body of one 10-year-old girl was found on the Russian side of the border the following morning. The search for others continues.
A member of the public reported finding unattended belongings of a man in Narva-Jõesuu beach on the northern coast of Estonia close to the Russian border at 18:10 on Friday. After contacting the relatives of the man, police immediately started a search and rescue operation in the area.
An hour later, a woman contacted the police to report that a 31-year-old man and two girls, both 10, had gone missing in the same area.
The unofficial beach where the four disappeared is situated on the mouth of the Narva river close to the border guard point, where strong winds often cause maelstroms. "There is a so-called 'dead spot' where maelstroms form and are very difficult to escape," a local inhabitant told ERR. "People drown here quite often. It's an unofficial beach where people swim in their own risk." Nevertheless, a tragedy of this magnitude is a first, locals and border guards said.
Two other girls also got into difficulties there on Friday, but were pulled to safety in time, the police reported.
On Saturday morning, the body of one of the missing girls was found on the coast across the border. The search for the two men and the other girl continue both on land and sea. On Sunday, divers were brought to the scene in addition to rescue boats and a helicopter already involved in the search.
Editor: M. Oll