Resistance trainees die in flood in Karenni State

At least 16 resistance members were killed in a flash flood while undergoing training in western Demoso Township, Karenni (Kayah) State on Thursday evening, spokespersons for the Karenni Army (KA) said. “They were holding a training for field medics in a valley when rapid runoff water from the nearby hills flooded the streambed where they were working,” said Col. Phone Naing, the adjutant general of the KA. Among the victims caught and carried off in the floodwaters were members of the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF), which operates under the KA, and the People’s Defence Forces (PDF), the armed wing of the publicly mandated National Unity Government. The floodwaters reportedly swept away 18 people, of whom 16 are confirmed to have drowned. The remaining two are missing, but the resistance groups have yet to recover their bodies. The waters of the Pun Chaung Creek, where the training and accident took place, were already higher than usual before the flash flood, Col. Phone Naing said, adding that search and rescue operations are underway for the missing fighters. Banyar Khun Aung, a leading member of Karenni State’s Interim Executive Council (IEC), confirmed to Myanmar Now that 18 resistance members had been caught in a flash flood and gone missing. A statement released by the KNDF at around 3:30pm on Friday added more detail. The accident occurred when recruits attending a training course for field medics attempted to cross a stream during an exercise on Thursday evening, the statement said. The KNDF also promised that its central committee would open a full investigation into the incident, periodically updating and informing the appropriate battalions and the public about their findings. Myanmar Now received information that eight KNDF fighters, one member of the Urban Revolutionary Front, and four members of PDF battalions operating the Shan highlands were among the 16 confirmed to have died in the flood. A 24-year-old trainee was among 16 people confirmed to have been killed in a flash flood during a training session in Karenni State (Photo: Supplied) The medics’ training course, implemented by the KNDF, began in June and was slated to last six months. Around 60 resistance members were participating, according to resistance sources. Two of the sources confirmed to Myanmar Now that the trainers arranged for the attendees to undergo an exercise after dark at around 8pm on Thursday. The exercise required the trainees to attempt to cross the Pun Chaung Creek with sandbags attached to their waists, they said. Training officers reportedly instructed the trainees to continue the simulation even after trainees asked to stop due to strong currents, the sources added. The battalions of the resistance members whose bodies were recovered on Friday are preparing funeral services for them, spokespersons said. Some of their commanders have called for those responsible to be held accountable for their deaths. Floods requiring emergency response operations have occurred in various parts of Myanmar this week, mostly caused by Typhoon Yagi. There have been dozens of confirmed deaths since Monday, with hundreds more missing. According to a statement from their battalion, two members of a Naypyitaw PDF went missing on Friday while rescuing trapped civilians on the east bank of the Sittaung River in Yedashe Township, Bago Region. Like the resistance trainees in Karenni State, they were swept away by floodwaters, according to the battalion’s statement.

Resistance trainees die in flood in Karenni State

The KNDF promised an investigation after 16 armed resistance members were confirmed to have drowned in in a rapid runoff flash flood while training for field medic duties

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