A Lashio man who was swept away by rising waters as he attempted to drive across a bridge during heavy rains in northern Shan State has yet to be found three days later.
Against the advice of other locals, Sai Nyein Kyaw Oo, also known as Cho Cho, tried to drive his car across the rushing Nam Loung stream in Lashio on July 28. The force of the water—which had risen around two feet over the bridge—carried both him and his vehicle away.
Rescue teams and volunteers from seven organizations have located the car he was driving but have been unable to find Sai Nyein Kyaw Oo, who is married and has two daughters.
“Many people warned him not to cross the bridge while the water levels were rising, […] but he closed all of his car doors and then he crossed it,” a local woman, Nang Hom, told SHAN. She reported that he had fallen into the stream near the Mansu monastery, also in Lashio, and was able to briefly phone relatives, but has not been heard from since.
Volunteer rescue worker Sai Loi said that rescue teams had intensified their efforts to locate Sai Nyein Kyaw Oo, but that water levels were still unstable due to heavy rains.
“Normally this stream has less water,” he said.
The Nam Loung stream flows from the north and into the Nam Sho and Nam Yaw streams, which are tributaries of the Namtu River.
