Further swimming fatalities in the Canaries last weekend have led to fresh calls for extra care to be taken with the start of the summer season just around the corner.
Two people drowned and a further three were rescued in a serious condition over what was a tragic weekend for sea-related incidents in Tenerife, Gran Canaria, El Hierro and La Palma.
The first of the drownings occurred on the Gran Canaria coast when a woman died after losing her footing and falling into the sea off rocks at Faro de Sardina. Her husband was injured also as he entered the water also in a failed bid to save her.
Hours later in El Hierro, a 50-year-old man died while practising underwater fishing alone in the spot known as Charco Manso. Emergency services were mobilised after his family reported that he had failed to surface but they could do nothing to save him.
Meanwhile in Tenerife a 55-year-old man was admitted to hospital in a critical condition after suffering a heart attack as he tried to recover from the impact of a large wave which upended him and plunged him underwater. Shortly afterwards, a young woman was rescued after nearly drowning at the notorious Playa del Los Patos beach in La Orotava, which has no lifeguards.
These and other incidents over the weekend – including the rescue of a man from a capsized canoe a short distance from the shore in Tazacorte (La Palma) and the rescue of two swimmers on the normally tranquil Playa de las Canteras in Las Palmas (Gran Canaria) – have prompted the Canarias, 1500 Km de costa association to issue a plea to the public to take extra care when in the sea and only use beaches patrolled by lifeguards. Stressing that “80% of all drownings happen less than 50 metres from the shore”, the association, which aims to heighten awareness of drownings and the risks posed by water, urged people to avoid taking to the water alone and only use designated swimming areas.
Between January and May this year, a total of 24 people, including three children, lost their lives in drownings in the sea and pools in the Canaries.
