The sea has claimed the lives of four people in the Canary Islands this weekin which the swell has been especially dangerous despite there being no declared alerts. The last fatality occurred this Saturday in Las Galletas (Tenerife). Salvamento Marítimo rescued the body of an 80-year-old man about 200 meters from the coast during the afternoon. According to the National Drowning Report (INA) prepared by the Royal Spanish Federation of Rescue and First Aid, 43 people have died in the Islands due to drowning between January and October of this year.
The death of this Saturday confirms a tragic week on the Canary coast. The event occurred shortly after 10 in the morning, when the 1-1-2 room received an alert from a private boat after having sighted a body floating in the sea. To the south coast of Tenerife, troops from Maritime Rescuethey stayed next to the body until the arrival of the GES helicopter, which would be in charge of rescuing it.
once on land, the toilets certified that it was an 80-year-old man already deceased. Members of the Civil Guard took charge until the arrival of the competent judicial authority, they proceeded to remove the body. This is the fourth fatality in Canary waters of the week. Although they could have been more, since It has been necessary to help several bathers in Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and Tenerife.
The first emergency situation occurred on Monday. Two people were in trouble on the coast of El Sauzal, north of Tenerife. A 28-year-old woman had to be assisted for several polytraumatisms after reaching the shore by her own means. The other man in distress was not so lucky and ended up missing at sea; emergency teams found a body on the coast the next day.
the most difficult day
Wednesday was the most difficult day. The Coordinating Center for Emergencies and Security (Cecoes) 112 received notice in the morning of a body floating in the Costa Ayala area, in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. At first it was thought that it could be the body of Josefa Traviesa, the missing 54-year-old from Teldense since last October 31, since his car was found near there. This hypothesis was finally discarded.
The same day, it was necessary to assist a bather who had been dragged by the current in Sardina del Norte (Gáldar). Meanwhile, in Fuerteventura it was necessary to rescue a young German on the beach of Cofete. The boy was in a critical condition – he came to a standstill -, so he was evacuated to the Hospital Insular de Gran Canaria in an emergency.
On Thursday there was a new death at sea. In this case, the victim was an 86-year-old bather on the beach at Patalavaca (Mogán). of norwegian origin, was saved from a stoppage, although he eventually died. That same day it was necessary to attend to a surfer on Las Canteras beach. On Friday there were two rescues in the waters of Lanzarote.
The third of Spain
With a total of 43 people deceased on the island coasts, the Canary Islands is the third autonomous community with the most deaths in aquatic environments between January and October of this year, according to a report by the Royal Spanish Federation of Rescue and First Aid collected by Eph. In it, the victims of this month of November have not been taken into account, which already adds up to six deaths, four this week and two last week. In Spain as a whole, a total of 345 people died in aquatic environments, 112 more than in 2021; all cases occurred in places lacking surveillance. Ahead of the Islands, there have been more drownings in Valencia (64) and Andalusia (54). | av
