May pulso pa umano ang 21-anyos na Nigerian Ateneo Blue Eagles player na si Divine Adili nang makarating ito sa pampang matapos malunod habang isinasagawa ang kanilang team-building activity sa isang beach resort sa Dipaculao, Aurora.
Ito ang isiniwalat ng kapwa niya Ateneo player na si Sam Reyes, 21, sa panayam ng dating CNN Philippines news anchor na si Pia Hontiveros sa podcast niyang Let’s Talk nitong Martes, June 16, 2026.
Kasama ni Sam sa nasabing panayam ang ka-teammate niyang si Kieffer Alas, 19.
Read: Divine Adili’s parents seek answers, justice after son's death
Sina Sam at Kieffer ay kabilang sa mga nakaligtas sa trahedyang kumitil sa buhay ng kanilang teammates na sina Divine at Rene Baterbonia, 18, noong June 8, 2026.
Read: Ateneo de Davao grants scholarships to Rene Baterbonia's six siblings
Sam and Kiefer recall team-building tragedy
Pagbabalik-tanaw ng dalawa, nasa kalagitnaan noon ng water activity ang koponan nang mangyari ang insidente ng pagkalunod nina Rene at Divine.
Kasama raw nila noon ang isang coach ng koponan na si Dean Castaño para subukin ang kanilang liksi bilang mga atleta.
Lahad ni Kiefer: "It was actually a pretty simple, supposed to be, like, a ten-minute thing lang.
"Our coaches are on the beach, then on the shore. He's going to walk five minutes and five minutes back.
"The players were just supposed to mirror him. Like, following in line with him.
"I think it's for a change of direction and agility."
Read: Police release initial findings in two Ateneo players' drowning
Pagpapatuloy naman ni Sam: "We lined up from the shore, then yung pinakadulo po is papunta ng open water.
"And then we would walk together.
"We were in the water... the deep is around the thigh area.
"I don't know lang sa iba, kasi ako po yung closest to the open water. Then halos nasa dulo na po ako ng line."
Read: DLSU Green Archers mourn deaths of Ateneo Blue Eagles players
Noong una ay banayad pa raw ang tubig sa karagatan kung saan sila naglalakad, ngunit wala pang isang minuto ay doon na raw nila naramdaman ang paglakas ng alon.
Saad ni Sam: "Just starting po, parang konting meters pa lang lumakas na yung alon.
"[The waves] are bigger than us.
"At first, we were having fun, laughing on the first wave.
"But after the first wave, it went up a bit, but we didn't really think much of it.
"We thought that the wave just made hakot the sand or maybe it just pulled us."
Read: PNP Aurora rules out foul play in deaths of two Ateneo players
Sa pangalawa at pangatlong beses na paghampas ng malakas na alon, doon na raw sila nagsimulang magkagulo at magkawatak-tawak, mula sa naunang nasa iisang linya lang.
Kuwento ni Kiefer: "Actually, in the second wave, one of our teammates started screaming, 'Help!'
"He was Kyle Gamber. He was around my area.
"Jay-M Leal and me, we were like near each other, then parang he [Kyle] got separated and went to the back.
"The weird thing was we were all laughing because we thought he was just joking.
"On the third wave, that's when everyone started screaming because we couldn't reach the ground.
"Si Malcom Tyler po na 6-foot-10, parang [yung tubig, nasa bibig na niya] ganun na kalalim."
Read: Rene Baterbonia’s dream: "Maiahon ko ang pamilya ko sa kahirapan"
Sabi naman ni Sam: "Coach John was screaming at us to go to the right, towards the shore. But kahit anong gawin namin, hindi kaya.
"I think that's when it all started. Parang all of us are panicking na. We didn't know what to do.
"Kumbaga, nag-scatter na kami in the water.
"Like, after the second wave, me and Drew Bongo, we were swimming hard to the right [papunta sa shore].
"And then after, like, noong naka-touch na kami ng sand, we looked back and nakita po namin na namomroblema na po yung ibang teammates namin.
"So we swam back to them to help."
Noong mga oras na iyon ay hindi na raw nakita nina Sam at Kiefer si Rene.
Ang tanging nakita na lang daw ni Kiefer ay si Divine, na ilang metro lang ang layo sa kanya at pilit ding lumalangoy papunta sa dalampasigan.
Lahad ni Kiefer: "Just me, Jay-M, and Divine, we were all depending on EJ Kapihe, kasi alam namin na magaling siya mag-swimming.
"So I was on the shoulder. Divine was on the other shoulder, and si Jay-M nasa harap [ni EJ], for like a solid twenty seconds ata yon.
"Tapos tinulak na lang kami ni EJ closer to the shore. It worked for a bit, then it just kept on bringing me and JM back."
Read: Hashtag Franco's mom remembers son amid Aurora drowning tragedy
Aminado sina Sam at Kiefer na may sandaling nawalan sila ng pag-asang makakaligtas.
Maliban daw kasi sa patuloy na paghampas ng malalakas na alon ay pagod na rin ang kanilang mga katawan sa paglangoy papunta sa dalampasigan.
Ngunit sa tulong din ng kanilang teammates, isa-isa silang natulungang makaahon at mapunta sa mababaw na parte ng dagat.
Doon na raw nakita nina Sam at Kiefer ang mga coach ng kanilang koponan, kabilang na ang head coach nilang si Tab Baldwin, na tumutulong sa pagsagip sa players.
Read: Coach Tab Baldwin breaks silence on deaths of Ateneo players
EJ Kapihe Attempts to Rescue Divine Adili
Nang isa-isa nang makaahon sa tubig ang players, doon na raw nagsimulang hanapin ni EJ si Divine.
Si EJ daw kasi ang huling nakasama at nakakita kay Divine na buhay pa.
Pagbabahagi ni Sam: "When we got out of the water, there were no first responders.
"Yung security guard lang po ng resort and isang lifeguard.
"So EJ, the Hawaiian one, was saving people. Then, when he’d get tired, he’d go back to shore, rest for a bit, then he swam back in.
"Para kasing last time, Divine was with him po. He was trying to save Divine.
"Pero parang hindi niya kinaya yung bigat ni Divine."
Read: Mother of Rene Baterbonia: "Gusto ko ng justice!"
Doon na raw nawala sa paningin ni EJ si Divine hanggang sa tuluyan na niya itong hindi makita.
Matapos malamang wala pa sa dalampasigan si Divine, doon na rin daw napansin ng ilan na maging si Rene ay hindi pa nakakaahon.
Rene and Divine's Bodies Found
Doon na raw nagsimulang maghanap ang bawat isa sa kanila kung nasaan sina Divine at Rene.
Hanggang isang empleyado ng resort ang nakakita raw kay Rene.
Pagbabalik-tanaw ni Sam: "There was this, I don't know if he's a security guard or a lifeguard of the resort, but he's wearing a life jacket.
"I heard they were screaming for help, kasi nakita na po nila si Rene.
"Rene was the first one found.
"When I saw them, I started running to the water, and Jared Bahay was the first to help carry Rene.
"Sumunod na rin ako to carry Rene. Yes, it was like 30 minutes, matagal na po silang nasa tubig.
"When we saw Rene, it was we who carried him out of the water.
"Not like first responders. Wala pong tumulong."
Read: Gerald Anderson, Lance Carr remember Rene Baterbonia
Pagkalipas ng ilang sandali ay saka palang dumating ang responders na lulan ng isang ambulansya.
Nagawa pa raw i-CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) si Rene ng isa nilang coach, hanggang sa ipahinto raw ito ng isa sa responders dahil kailangan nang isakay si Rene sa ambulansyang magdadala sa kanya sa pinakamalapit na ospital.
Ilang minuto lamang matapos masakay ni Rene sa ambulansya, nakita na rin daw ni EJ si Divine na walang malay.
Pag-alala ni Kiefer: "They boarded him [Rene]. The ambulance was leaving na, me and coach Sandro [Soriano] saw that Divine was getting carried out na by EJ.
"Coach Sandro and I ran to the ambulance, telling them to stop. I don't think they heard us, but they left.
"So Coach Sandro and I walked back and we saw, like, fifteen people carrying Divine.
"I was just there, like I couldn't grasp what was happening. I was just like staring, like, plain eyesight. It's too hard.
"Then, ayun, they were doing CPR for a bit."
Sundot na tanong ni Pia, "They tried to CPR for both Rene and Divine on the beach, pero wala na silang pulse?"
Ayon kay Sam, sa pagkakaalam at pagkakarinig niya sa mga kasamahan niyang bumuhat kay Divine, mayroon pa itong pulso bago isakay sa police vehicle na magdadala sa kanya sa ospital
Ani Sam: "The only one I heard that had pulse po was Divine. I heard it from my other teammates.
"Kasi po, after what happened, we gathered at the pool and shared our perspectives, like POV, kung ano po ang nangyari."
Hindi na raw alam nina Sam at Kiefer kung ano ang nangyari sa ospital dahil walang sumamang ibang players sa kanila.
Saad ni Sam, "The one who went to Rene po was our ball boy... And then, wala na pong sumama kay Divine kasi may representative na po doon sa ospital."
Nasaan ang head coach nila noong oras na iyon?
Sagot ni Kiefer, "Coach Tab and Coach Dean, I think they drove, like, behind the police yata."
Read: Tab Baldwin resigns amid probe into deaths of Ateneo athletes
Sam and Kiefer Cite Lapses in Compliance and Safety Protocols
Pagbabahagi pa nina Sam at Kiefer, bago sila tumungong Aurora ay nagsagawa na si Coach Tab ng orientation tungkol sa mga panganib na maaaring harapin sa dagat, partikular ang rip currents sa resort na kanilang pupuntahan.
Lahad ni Sam, "We had meetings before training that Coach Tab explained about the rip currents and how to get out of rip [nandito pa lang kami sa Manila]."
Susog ni Kiefer: "Yes, we talked about it a couple of days before. We had, like, a pretty long discussion naman about it, like swim vertically to the shore kung may rip current.
"And they warned us about parang uneven na sand, like, you can randomly go back down and up and up."
Read: Ateneo refutes allegations from Tab Baldwin’s estranged wife
Sundot na tanong sa kanila, "Hindi ba kayo natakot?"
Mabilis na sagot ni Kiefer, "Probably of getting tired lang, but other than that, we were pretty excited na."
Gayunman, ayon sa dalawa, mabilis na napalitan ng matinding lungkot at takot ang kanilang excitement matapos ang trahedyang naganap.
Paniniwala nina Sam at Kiefer, may kakulangan sa pagpapatupad ng safety measures sa naturang outing.
Anila, kapos umano sila sa ilang safety equipment, kabilang ang mga life jacket na maaaring nakatulong sana sa oras ng emergency.
Itinanggi rin ng dalawa na binalaan sila ng may-ari ng resort tungkol sa mga posibleng panganib sa dagat dulot ng malalakas na alon noong araw na iyon.
Sabi ni Sam, "For me, when I was almost drowning, I was alone. So, for me, parang kulang po yung safety."
Pagsang-ayon ni Kiefer, "Yes, that's what we felt. But before that, we felt okay naman.
"But during the accident mismo, that's when we started feeling that kind of way."