A boy, 6, drowned on Saturday while swimming with his mother and elder brother, 9, in a prohibited area of Canet d’en Berenguer beach in Valencia Province.
Bathing was banned due to strong currents but the family trio still went in.
They all fell at the same time down a sinkhole of several metres.
The mother managed to come to the surface along with her eldest son.
After searching sometime for her missing boy, she contacted emergency services.
Four hours later, Guardia Civil divers recovered the child’s body four metres under the waterline- some 15 metres away from where his mother and brother fell.
The family had come from Segorbe in Castellon Province and were given emotional support by medics and Cruz Roja staff.
Canet city council declared three days of official mourning following the tragedy.
MORE VALENCIA NEWS:
- First monkeypox case detected in Spain’s Valencia region
- Man tries to strangle health centre receptionist in Valencia area of Spain
- Tap water had toxin levels up to 1,000 times over safety limit on Valencia region industrial estate in Spain