Mother's Tribute To Norfolk Broad Swim Death Son

Mother's Tribute To Norfolk Broad Swim Death Son

The mother of a teenage boy who died after getting into trouble while swimming in a Norfolk broad has paid tribute her son as a "very good child".

Close friends Bonheur Musungay, 14, and Stella Kambi, 17, died on a family day out at St Andrews Broad at Thorpe Marshes, on the outskirts of Norwich, when the tragedy happened late on Wednesday.

Norfolk Police believe Bonheur got into difficulty while swimming and Stella tried to rescue him before getting into trouble herself.

In a statement released by the Norfolk Congolese Association to the Eastern Daily Press, Bonheur's mother said: "Bonheur was a very good child heavily involved in the local community and the church.

"He was very good at school and one day hoped to become a lawyer. This is a tragedy and it is devastating."

Police urged caution following the incident, as they continued to investigate the circumstances.

Detective Sergeant Sarah Knights said: "This is a tragic incident and on behalf of everyone involved, I would like to offer my condolences and deepest sympathies to the family."

She added that members of the public had entered the water before emergency services arrived, but were unable to help.

"A number of witnesses were spoken to at the scene and we will now continue to work together with partners to piece together what happened and post mortems will take place in due course," Ms Knights said.

"Without wanting to prejudge what has happened here, I would urge people to take the utmost care around water and to be aware of hidden dangers such as fast flowing currents and underwater obstacles and weeds."

Brendan Joyce, chief executive of Norfolk Wildlife Trust, said new "no swimming" signs had been put up in recent weeks, but were almost instantly ripped down in the latest in a spate of vandalism attacks.

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