Five-Year-Old Boy Drowns in Temple Pond in Rayong

Picture courtesy of Amarin

A five-year-old boy drowned after falling into pond, at a temple in Rayong province while his mother briefly took a phone call. The incident occurred at Wat Suwannarangsarit, known locally as “Wat Yai Ra,” in Ban Chang district.

Police Lieutenant Ekalak Kamtan, Deputy Inspector of Ban Chang Police Station, received the distress call at approximately 13:30 on 21 May and responded to the scene along with rescue workers from the Siam Rayong Foundation and medical staff from Ban Chang Hospital.

At the rear of the temple, rescuers found the boy’s distraught family, including his inconsolable mother, surrounded by concerned onlookers and temple monks. The boy’s lifeless body was later recovered from the pond, by a coordinated team of rescue workers and monks.

According to the mother, she had brought her son to the temple for a walk. While sitting near the well on a marble bench, she received a phone call and momentarily diverted her attention. Her son had been playing with sand nearby. When she turned back, he was gone. She saw one of his shoes beside the pond and feared the worst, immediately calling for help.

Despite desperate attempts of CPR by emergency responders, the boy was pronounced dead at the scene. His mother, overwhelmed with grief, was comforted by relatives and temple staff.

The family had recently relocated from Nan province, intending to enrol the boy at the local temple school. All paperwork for his admission had been nearly completed. A teacher from the school stated they had been preparing to welcome him as a new student but were now preparing for his funeral instead.

Police have confirmed that the family does not suspect foul play. The boy’s body has been sent for a post-mortem examination at Ban Chang Hospital before religious rites are carried out.

  Adapted by Asean Now from Amarin 2025-05-22.