Girl saved from drowning after lover's tiff

by Ananda Agalakada

Police officers get more brickbats than bouquets. Even their heroic efforts go unnoticed while the slightest mistake garners much attention.

The heroic efforts of Police constable A.P. Jayasinghe attached to the Batticaloa police to save a drowning woman from the raging waters of a river however has to be commended.

A.P. Jayasinghe of Welipanna, Mathugama joined the police department in 2008 as a constable. During his tenure in the police department he served in many stations and his latest destination was Batticaloa.

Traffic constables Bandara and Jayasinghe

According to Jayasinghe, the day was a Monday. He and his partner, constable A.M.M.K. Bandara were deployed at the Kallady bridge in Batticaloa.

It was like any other day and the area was sparsely populated. The day dragged on and both Jayasinghe and his colleague engaged in their usual chores. The area was serene during daytime with crowds mainly gathering at the riverside in the evenings.

Kallady is home to singing fish and was quite an attraction with travellers.

Jayasinghe remembers the serene atmosphere was suddenly shattered by the cries of a youth who was running towards them.

"He came running and told us that a girl was trying to jump into the river from the bridge. My colleague and i ran to the spot".

"We could see a girl walking briskly to and fro on the bridge. She had a mobile phone held to her ear. When we came close to her, she jumped into the river without giving us any chance to stop her", he said. "We were shocked and several onlookers were shouting to help her. I remembered the lessons I learnt during my training. I quickly took off my weapon and handed it to my partner, Bandara and jumped into the water fearing for her safety".

"Now the girl was being swept away by the flowing current. It was quite strong, but I was not deterred and tried to close the gap between her and me".

"After jumping into the river I swam for a while and saw her gradually drowning. When I reached her, the girl grabbed me and later fell unconscious. I kept her close to me with her head above the water. I spent about 45 minutes with her in the water".

"However, I managed to turn her head and held it thus preventing her from drowning. When I was swimming with the girl, my partner who was looking for us also helped me to bring the girl ashore".

"Bandara with the help of two others rushed towards us with a boat and we were taken aboard. After we came out of the river we gave her first aid and she recovered".

"Later we came to the Police station in Batticaloa. The girl was questioned by the HQI of Batticaloa police CI Goonasekara. She said she had an argument with her boyfriend who was abroad and she decided to end her life".

Later, the parents of the girl were informed by police and the girl was produced before the Magistrates Court in Batticaloa.