Alex Trelinski
A BRITISH tourist and a Polish national drowned at a Costa Blanca beach on Friday when they went into the sea to save two children, aged 6 and 7, who had got into difficulty.
The tragedy happened at Guardamar’s Playa La Roqueta with up to six people entering the water to help the youngsters who were struggling with the strong waves and current.
The summer lifeguard service does not start until June 15, but two members of the team who happened to be there assisted in the rescue.
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The incident happened at around noon on the stretch of the beach close to Calle Peru and the Hotel Casablanca.
Exact details have not been disclosed but when two ambulances arrived at the beach, the two men had died.
The British man was aged 52 and the Pole was 46.
It’s not known whether either of them was related to the children who reached the shore, safe and sound.
A 39-year-old man with symptoms of drowning was taken to Torrevieja Hospital along with a 22-year-old man who was faint after swallowing water, and a 20-year-old woman suffering from shock and dizziness..
Their nationalities have not been disclosed.
It’s the third death from drowning at Playa La Roqueta within 24 hours after a 68-year-old Israeli died on Thursday afternoon.
Guardamar mayor, Jose Luis Saez, said: “The sea conditions are very dangerous, with strong dragging currents making bathing unadvisable.”
The death toll at La Roqueta adds to five drownings last weekend and Monday on the Costa Blanca.
Lives were lost at beaches in Benissa, La Marina(Elche), Calpe, the Orihuela Costa, and Torrevieja.
