On Sunday, February 28, Belarusian tourist Banradenka Viktar, 26, drowned while swimming downstream of Pongour Falls, 50 kilometers south of Da Lat, the second fatal incident in the area since last week.
The foreign foreign tourist was reported missing at a lake at the foot of Pongour Falls, reports Thanh Nien. Around 3pm, witnesses saw a foreigner take off his clothes and jump into the lake. The man appeared to be drowning several minutes later. Local tourists tried to save Viktar without success. Local authorities were then informed and a rescue mission launched to save Viktar, however despite the rescuers' best efforts, the Belarusian's body was not found until 10:30am the next morning.
According to Nguyen Vi Hanh, vice president of Dat Nam LLC, the company in charge of Pongour Falls' management, witnesses confirmed that Viktar had arrived at the falls and insisted on sightseeing without buying an entrance ticket, reports VTC. The management company head also claims Viktar showed signs of drunkenness and entered the falls without taking the necessary safety precautions.
Viktar arrived in Vietnam on February 16 through the Friendship Pass in northern Lang Son province, reports Tuoi Tre. His body has been released to Belarusian representatives in Saigon and is being examined for cause of death.
This is the second such incident to take place in Da Lat in the past week. On Friday, February 26, three British tourists died at Datanla Falls after a ziplining accident. The company responsible for the zipline, Dam Me, has since been suspended by local authorities.
[Photo via Thanh Nien]
