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DROWNING

German tourist latest victim to drown off south west France

A woman died on Sunday while swimming with her family at a beach in south western France.

Published: 3 October 2016 13:30 CEST
German tourist latest victim to drown off south west France
Photo: AFP

The 31-year-old German woman died at around 3.30pm on Sunday, reported the Sud Ouest newspaper.

She had been bathing with her family on the beach at Lacanau Océan, a part of the Gironde department popular with surfers.

Emergency services were unable to revive the woman on the shoreline. 
 
Authorities said that the death marked the fifth of its kind in just the last month. 
 
The woman's death comes just days after another German tourist, aged 39, drowned off the coast of nearby Cap Ferret.
 
The Atlantic coast in south west France has proven to be a dangerous place to swim over the years, due to strong currents and high waves.
 
There have been numerous deaths each summer, including a number of British tourists over the years.
 
This year, Due to an unusually mild autumn, swimmers have been heading to the beaches of south western France more than they usually do. 
 
At the same time, fewer life guards have been patrolling many of the beaches as is customary at the end of summer. 
 
It remains unclear if the beach was being patrolled at the time of the woman's death on Sunday. 
 

The woman's death comes just days after another German tourist, aged 39, drowned off the coast of nearby Cap Ferret.

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FISH

Teenager dies snorkelling after venomous fish encounter off Costa Brava beach

A 16-year-old was killed while snorkelling off Platja d’Aro in Catalonia after an encounter with a venomous weever fish.

Published: 20 August 2020 14:18 CEST
Teenager dies snorkelling after venomous fish encounter off Costa Brava beach
Stock photo: District47/Flickr

The boy, who has not been publically named, suffered anaphylactic shock and died on Saturday afternoon while on a family trip to the beach.

His parents raised the alarm after he disappeared while snorkelling and he was found unconscious nearby by bathers and brought to shore.

Initial post-mortem results show the teenager had a tiny wound on his neck, above his windpipe, and scratches on his face.

His parents told local media that he had been filming marine life with a waterproof camera and that footage retrieved by investigators suggested he had been stung by a weever fish.

“He had been following a jellyfish about 100 metres offshore which led him to a strange and colourful fish with a harmless-looking face,” according to a statement from the parents quoted in La Vanguardia.

“He was only able to film it for 30 seconds from a distance and at the last second it disappeared and stung him around the jaw area.”

A post-mortem has been carried out in nearby Girona where forensic staff are awaiting toxicology results.

The fish has been identified locally as a spotted weever (rachinus araneusa) a species that carries venom in its dorsal spines and buries itself in sand on the seabed.


Photo by Roberto Pillon/creative commons/fishbase.org

They are usually hard to spot and have been known to deliver painful stings to swimmers feet who unknowingly step in them when paddling in shallow water.

But although they can provoke a severe allergic reaction and in rare cases provoke heart attacks such stings rarely prove fatal because those who step on them can usually reach the safety of the shore before drowning.

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