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by Nick Delgado
Guam - The life of 19-year-old Alexander John Miralles was cut short after he drowned during a school hike to Anao Point over the weekend. While "AJ's" family and friends mourn his death, the University of Guam is looking into the incident in hopes to prevent another tragedy from happening in the future.
A school field trip with a group of 57 students from a UOG history class turned tragic after one of the students was swept out over the reef at Anao Point in Yigo early Saturday morning. "When they said, 'Your son was swept over', I just immediately knew it was a bad situation and my thoughts is I just want him home," said Alexander Miralles, AJ's father. He was at work when he heard the news.
"When I go there the students were there but I couldn't go down to the trail because it was already blocked and the students couldn't speak but only telling me they were sorry for what happened," he stated.
He says the students tried their best to use items on land to toss out to AJ in an attempt to bring him back in. But he was swept further out and Guam Fire and Coast Guard rescue personnel were called to search the area and later located his body. The class was led by UOG professor Dr. Michael Bevacqua, who decided to take administrative leave following the incident. UOG president Dr. Robert Underwood said, "I want to extend condolences from the university to the Miralles family this is a very difficult time for them."
As a result of the tragic incident, the university is reviewing the events that led up to Miralles' death and that includes interviewing witnesses and helping students cope with the loss. "We're in shock as always in an incident of this nature it's really critical that we focus on the needs of the family and then secondarily of course the people who knew him," he said. "Always say 'I love you to your mom and dad', likewise to the parents, never miss a day because you never know when their last day will be."
AJ was 19 years old. UOG will begin critical debriefings of students and others who attended this weekend's field trip, beginning Tuesday. Rosaries are being said nightly at 7:30pm at the Santa Barbara Church in Dededo. AJ's funeral will be held on May 2.