JOHOR BARU: A 14-year-old boy drowned in a lake near the Kempas Permai People's Housing Project (PPR) on Jalan Denai yesterday evening.
Kempas Fire and Rescue Department operations commander Yazid Abdul Rahman said that the boy's body was recovered at 7.35pm, about an hour after a distress call was made by passers-by.
"We used the 'surface searching' technique with grappling irons for over an hour before locating the body.
"Unfortunately, he was pronounced dead by the medical team at the scene," he said.
The "surface searching" technique involves sweeping the lake bed with grappling irons – metal hooks attached to ropes – to locate submerged bodies or objects.
Johor Baru (North) police chief Assistant Commissioner Balveer Singh said that the police would provide additional information as the investigation progressed.