TWO children have become the country's latest drowning victims.
This has prompted calls by the police force for investigating officers to look into the issue of negligence.
In one incident, a 10-year-old boy drowned at the weekend when he is believed to have followed his stepfather, who was swimming across the Vitogo River in Lautoka.
The boy was found a few metres from the river bank and was pronounced dead on arrival at the Lautoka Hospital, said police.
In a separate incident, about 2.30pm on Sunday, a six-year-old boy, believed to be swimming alone drowned in a river at Waidina in Naitasiri.
His body was found floating in the river.
The Fiji Police Force has issued stern warnings to parents and guardians about supervising their children while near water sources.
Police spokeswoman Ana Naisoro said the six-year-old boy's body was awaiting a post mortem examination while investigations continued.
"Investigators have been asked to look into the issue of negligence," she said.
Ms Naisoro says as the country gears up for the festive season, there are usually a lot of water activities and people should talk about safety issues as a family and the dangers of swimming unsupervised.
"The issue of proper supervision cannot be stressed enough. This is often taken lightly and has unfortunately resulted in the loss of lives.
"Supervision is a vital area that needs to be taken seriously, especially if a person can not swim," said Ms Naisoro.
Police said drowning death toll now stands at 55 compared to 30 for the same period last year.
Of the 55 deaths this year, 14 were children under the age of 10.