2 drown in separate incidents

Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services Search and Rescue Unit members carry the body of 50-year-old Japanese diver Norihiko Manabe, which they found floating along the shoreline at Laolao Bay yesterday afternoon. Manabe went swimming with a dive instructor and two other divers yesterday morning when he later could not be found. (DFEMS)

A Japanese diver drowned at Laolao Bay while a 71-year-old Korean man also drowned at the beach of Kensington Hotel in San Roque yesterday afternoon.

In the Laolao Bay case, acting Department of Public Safety spokesman Sgt. Jason Tarkong identified the victim as 50-year-old Norihiko Manabe, a tourist.

In the San Roque incident, Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services spokesman Derek Gersonde identified the victim as Kyoung Ju Kim.

Tarkong said that, according to a diving instructor, Manabe was an experienced diver, having been to Saipan over 20 times, had over 500 dives, and was familiar with Laolao Bay diving spot.

Tarkong said police officers responded to a reported missing diver at Laolao Bay at 12:29pm.

Preliminary police investigation showed that Manabe was with a diving instructor from Coral Reef Tours and two other divers, who are tourists.

The group went diving at Laolao Bay on Wednesday and went diving again yesterday at the same bay.

Tarkong said the group began diving yesterday at 9am and later took a break.

Later, during the second dive at around 10:30am, Manabe was the last one to come out from the buoy site located outside a marker for the channel. As the three turned around, they could not find Manabe.

The instructor then called 911.

DPS Boating Safety Unit launched its rescue boat. DFEMS assisted Boating Safety by launching its own Search and Rescue Unit for water and land searches.

As rescue team members were diving in the water searching for Manabe, the U.S. Coast Guard helicopter from Guam arrived and joined the search.

At 3:15pm, a member of the DFEMS Search and Rescue found the body, which was floating face down along the shoreline.

Tarkong said that Manabe had no pulse and was not breathing.

DFEMS personnel noticed obvious signs of death such as rigor mortis, pupils were fixed, was cold to the touch, and had blue pigmentation.

Manabe’s body was brought to the Commonwealth Health Center’s emergency room.

Tarkong said he does not know the time when Manabe was declared dead by a doctor.

In the second drowning case, DFEMS received a call from DPS 911 dispatch about a possible drowning on the beach of Kensington Hotel at 4:02pm.

Preliminary investigation showed that Kim’s son was seen pulling Kim onto the shoreline at the beach. The hotel’s lifeguards performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation until medics arrived.

Upon arrival, DFEMS medics performed CPR on Kim at the scene and while he was being transported to CHC.

A doctor pronounced Kim dead at 4:41pm.

Last Jan. 26, 53-year-old Isidro Wabol, who had gone swimming, was later found dead outside the reef at Sugar Dock in Chalan Kanoa.