Hyderabad: Three members of a family drowned in a village lake at Manoor in Sangareddy district on Friday. The couple’s son, a Class VII student, who tried to save his uncle after he slipped into deep water, survived by clinging to a branch.




According to Manoor sub-inspector A Koteshwar Rao, auto driver Bhaturi Narasimha Reddy (36), his wife Krishnaveni (31), their son Harshavardhan Reddy and Narasimha Reddy’s brother Sanga Reddy (32) had gone to the village lake around 8:30 am in Narasimha’s auto. They planned to wash clothes belonging to the household ahead of the festival.




The family had almost finished washing the clothes by the afternoon when Sanga Reddy accidentally slipped into a deep section of the lake. Seeing his uncle fall into the water, Harshavardhan tried to catch hold of him and pull him to safety. However, the boy also slipped into the lake.




Narasimha and Krishnaveni then rushed to rescue Sanga Reddy and their son, but both lost their footing and fell into the water. Harshavardhan managed to save himself by catching hold of a branch. After getting out of the water, he alerted villagers about the incident.




Villagers informed the police, who rushed to the spot and pressed professional swimmers into service to rescue the family members. The bodies of Narasimha and Sanga Reddy were retrieved from the lake. Krishnaveni was taken to Narayankhed Area Hospital for treatment, but she too died, police said.




The tragedy has left the family and residents of Manoor in shock. Sanga Reddy was employed as a helper at a grocery shop in the town.