Two youths die after baptism at Holy Consuming Fire Church

A religious baptism ceremony ended in tragedy on Sunday after two members drowned in a quarry dam in the central Malawi district of Ntchisi.

The deceased youths Bernard Chimombo (21) and Kondwani Banda (19) from Kanyanje Village in Traditional Authority Chilowoko in the district were among 32 members of the Consuming Fire Church who went to the dam for baptism.

There are two contradictory reports on how the two met their fate.

One report say that the two were being baptised with their heads repeatedly being fully immersed in the water when one of them suddenly drowned. The other member drowned as he dived in to rescue the fellow believer.

Another reports says the baptism went smoothly, but after the official baptism ceremony, the two reportedly remained behind to take a swim after being seduced by the cool waters in the dam.

The two reportedly drowned immediately and its not known whether the two knew how to swim.

Police have since ruled out foul play in the death of the two members as they reportedly died due to drowning and suffocation

Holy Consuming Fire Church has not made any comment on the demise of the believers.