Two 16-year-old boys perished after being entangled in Enagh Lough near Londonderry.
Monday at around 18:30 BST, the emergency services were dispatched to Temple Road.
One of the boys was rescued from the water and transported to the hospital, where he was confirmed dead later.
The second child was pronounced dead at the scene when Foyle Search and Rescue and police divers removed him from the water.
Another boy was rushed to the hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, according to the police.
Three additional boys were also present.
A top PSNI officer has stated, “while they have been left shaken, they are not physically hurt.”
“This incident is still under investigation, but we believe at this time that it included a terrible drowning.
Our thoughts are with the impacted parties’ families.
Father Michael Canny, the parish priest of Waterside, stated that the tragedy would be felt throughout the city.
He added that the families were traumatized and distraught.
“They are members of the Indian Keralese congregation at St. Columba’s in Waterside,” he explained.
“I understand that the boys attend a nearby elementary school and that two of the mothers are nurses. Another is employed in the local health care system, while a third is employed in a local business.
It is a terrible catastrophe, and there is widespread anguish.
Yesterday was a balmy, wonderful day towards the end of summer.
But at this lough, where six young men had come to swim, a catastrophe occurred.
The water is now perfectly motionless and transparent.
Six bicycles are still present, leaning against trees, a bank, and a fence and leading to a little jetty that extends into the lough.
Several pairs of shoes, jackets, and backpacks are strewn over the edge of the lough; these are all indications that youngsters visited the water on a warm vacation evening.
Mark Durkan, an SDLP assembly member, described it as an “awful tragedy.”
Mr. Durkan stated that he believed the group of boys went cycling in the vicinity and a few of them swam in the lough.
“From my conversations with some of the boys, I gather that one of them got into trouble in the water,” he stated.
“His friend attempted to assist him, but he ended up in the same situation.”
Gary Middleton, an assembly member of the Democratic Unionist Party, called it a tragic incident and expressed his thoughts and prayers for the victims’ families.
Ciara Ferguson, a Sinn Féin assembly member, stated that all of Derry’s thoughts and prayers were with the families.
Rachael Ferguson, the councilwoman for the Alliance, stated that the community was astonished and disappointed.
“I spoke with some of the family members who were in complete disbelief, and the little boys I saw – what they witnessed is very heartbreaking,” she said.
They will require substantial backing.
Tragic consequence
Dr. Nigel Ruddell, medical director of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, told that several specialized crews, including the helicopter emergency medical service, responded to the event.
Initially, according to him, emergency staff responded to reports of two missing people in the sea.
“There were others who had been in the water, one of them was transported to the hospital suffering from the effects of being in the water, but is doing okay,” he said.
“Sadly, one person was rescued from the sea in critical condition and transferred to Altnagelvin [hospital].
“Unfortunately, a lengthy search ensued for a second young man who had been reported as missing.
“It turned out to be a very lengthy procedure, with tragic results. This morning, our sympathies are with those directly engaged, as well as their families and friends, in these awful circumstances.”
The North West Migrants Forum stated that the organization was familiar with both families.
It stated, “We can only imagine the incalculable pain they are through today.”
It added on Facebook, “Prayers are with the entire Kerala community as they try to make sense of this terrible catastrophe.”
