Tragic Drowning of Sisters in Snowdonia National Park
Two sisters have accidentally drowned after paddling fully clothed at a picturesque beauty spot within Eryri, also known as Snowdonia National Park, in Wales. An inquest at Caernarfon Coroner's Court heard the distressing details of the incident, which occurred on the 11th of June 2025.
Details of the Fatal Incident
Hajra Zahid, aged 29, and her younger sister Haleema Zahid, aged 25, were part of a group of five students from the University of Chester visiting the Nant Gwynant area of Gwynedd. The group, which included three male friends, had travelled to the wild swimming site and waterfall along the Afon Cwm Llan river on the Watkin Path, a popular route leading to the summit of Snowdon.
For privacy and religious reasons, the sisters, who could not swim, separated from the male friends to paddle in a pool upstream. The men later called out for Hajra and Haleema but received no response. Upon reaching the pools, they discovered the sisters' shoes and personal belongings left at the water's edge.
The friends managed to pull an unconscious Hajra, who was wearing a red dress, from the water onto the riverbank. However, they were unable to locate Haleema immediately. Emergency services were alerted, and two members of the Llanberis mountain rescue team later retrieved Haleema, dressed in blue jeans and a black shirt, from deep water near the waterfall. Tragically, both women were pronounced dead at the scene shortly after.
Coroner's Findings and Warnings
The assistant coroner for north-west Wales, Sarah Riley, presided over the inquest. She concluded that the sisters had intended only to paddle in the water and had not planned to swim or enter deeper sections of the pool. "Having considered the evidence that neither could swim and that they were fully clothed, I am satisfied that neither sister went to swim or enter parts of the pool that would put them out of their depths in the water," Riley stated.
One possible explanation for the tragedy was that one or both sisters had slipped from an "exceptionally slippy" slab of rock at the edge of the pools. The inquest heard that mountain rescue team members who entered the water also slipped on the same rock. Riley officially recorded the deaths as accidental, resulting from drowning after the sisters were unable to swim to safety.
In her concluding remarks, the coroner extended her sincere condolences to the friends and family of Hajra and Haleema, describing the case as "extremely tragic." She also issued a public warning, urging caution about the dangers of entering such natural pools, especially for non-swimmers.
Background of the Sisters
Hajra and Haleema Zahid were originally from Rawalpindi in northern Pakistan. They had moved to the United Kingdom in January 2025 to pursue a master's degree in international business at the University of Chester. Hajra was a married mother of two children.
In a heartfelt statement read during the inquest, Hajra's husband, Hessham Minhas, paid tribute to his wife. "She always placed herself at the centre of family life," he said. "She was a determined, ambitious woman who believed in the power of education and personal growth, with a dream of building a better future for herself and her family. Her memory lives on in the lives she touched and the family she left behind."
The tragic loss of the Zahid sisters has highlighted the inherent risks associated with water activities in natural environments, even for those who do not intend to swim. The coroner's emphasis on caution serves as a sobering reminder to all visitors to national parks and similar outdoor locations.
