Tragedy shook the city of Doumé in the middle of the celebration of the National Unity Day in Cameroon. A 17-year-old teenager lost his life by drowning on Wednesday, May 20, 2026 in a lake located in the Plateau district, while the population was massively attending the festivities organized on the Place des Fêtes.
According to several testimonies collected by our sources, the young boy had gone to the shores of the lake in the company of friends. Not knowing how to swim, he would have ventured alone to the left bank, in an area reputed to be very deep, located after a buzzard and surrounded by trees and shrubs.
Moments later, the teenager reportedly lost his footing before struggling desperately in the water under the helpless eyes of his friends, all younger than him. Witnesses say that he was screaming for help while gradually disappearing below the surface.
Panicked, two children immediately ran to the neighboring houses to alert the adults. A girl in a nearby camp also reportedly screamed at the top of her lungs to attract the attention of local residents.
But at the same time, a large part of the inhabitants were at the festival square for the May 20 celebrations, leaving the neighborhood almost deserted at the time of the tragedy.
Alerted by the children, several local residents finally rushed to the lake and some jumped into the water to try to save the teenager. Unfortunately, the emergency services arrived too late.
Doctors dispatched to the scene tried in vain to resuscitate him. The 17-year-old was finally pronounced dead at the scene.