Mother Rescued After Jumping into Malwathu Oya with Two Children; Children Missing

A woman who jumped into the Malwathu Oya in Anuradhapura with her two children has been rescued by locals and hospitalized, but the two children, swept away by the current, are yet to be found. The 40-year-old woman, a resident of Angulana, Moratuwa, jumped into the Malwathu Oya yesterday (02) near the bridge on Bandaranaike Mawatha, Anuradhapura, along with her children.

The children missing from the incident are an eight-year-old boy and a four-and-a-half-year-old girl.

The rescued woman told the police that her husband, who had taken a loan and gone abroad for work, was avoiding her and not even answering phone calls, and that she made this decision when she could no longer bear the harassment from creditors demanding money. Police investigations have revealed that she told her family she was going to look for a job, boarded a train from Fort, Colombo, on the afternoon of the day before yesterday (01), and arrived in Anuradhapura at night.

It is also stated that after arriving at the location by a three-wheeler, as she prepared to jump into the river while embracing her children, the children expressed their unwillingness and screamed. However, she stated that after jumping into the water, the children slipped away from her, and she only remembers holding onto a tree.

A resident of Mihindupura, Anuradhapura, while on his way to the city, saw a woman clinging to a tree in the middle of the current and waving her hand. He immediately acted, joining with villagers to rescue her using ropes and admit her to the hospital. Due to the prevailing heavy rainfall, which has caused the water level of the Malwathu Oya to rise, and the frequent presence of crocodiles in the area, operations by the Anuradhapura Divisional Police Lifesaving Unit to find the children have been hampered. Police state that the suspect mother, currently receiving treatment at the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital, is expected to be arrested.