A very recent tragedy has befallen the small community of Portsmouth Ohio where a group of young kids were tragically killed by drowning in the Ohio River.
The location of Portsmouth is near the Ohio River
According to a group of other teenagers who tried to rescue, the group of kids drowning said that shortly before the incident, the kids were said to be chasing ‘Water type Pokemon’.
The Portsmouth flood wall is a popular tourist attraction in Southern Ohio. It is also one of the “Pokestops” that rewards players on Pokemon Go for visiting it.
From what bystanders report the children took a small raft out on the Ohio river, landing it on a sandbar which then they got off and started walking around. A upstream current caught them and pulled them downstream. No children were wearing life vests at the time, leading to their deaths.
Pokemon Go, the game that requires players who use a smartphone travel around local areas to ‘catch’ them rewards points and benefits for travel and exploration. Additional points are rewarded to players who come in close contact with water.
A prayer vigil is planned to be held at the Portsmouth flood wall at 8PM tomorrow evening.
This instance is not the first fatality with a so-called agumented reality game. In May a Google Ingress player was killed while on a pier in Ireland at 2:30 in the morning.
Additionally, as a interesting fact, had these deaths of been related to firearms, the news would run a 24/7 non-stop cavalcade attempting to ban guns. Yet when people die due to sheer negligence or ill-will on a socially acceptable platform, minimal outrage will result.