Accident Details
The revelation came from Rui Lampreia, the commander of the Douro Captaincy, who explained that the accident occurred at 14:52. The victim was kitesurfing with a friend of the same age when the incident took place. “He was caught in a wind phenomenon exceeding 90 km/h, which swept him across to the other side of the Douro River, at the mouth, crashing against the Cantareira pier,” described Lampreia. Despite the severity of the accident, the young man “only suffered minor injuries and did not require hospital assistance.”
Rescue Operation
The young kitesurfer was rescued by a team from the Douro lifeguard station and was later handed over to the mother of his friend, who had come to the scene to pick him up, according to Rui Lampreia. The second kitesurfer, as stated by the commander, “managed to leave the river on his own, on the Vila Nova de Gaia side, and was not seen again.”
Weather Warnings
In light of the conditions, the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) increased the number of districts under red warning from seven to ten, which is the highest level of alert, due to strong maritime agitation expected today and Thursday. The IPMA also issued orange and yellow warnings for several districts across the mainland due to rain, strong winds, and snowfall.
Affected Districts
The districts of Porto, Faro, Setúbal, Viana do Castelo, Lisbon, Leiria, Beja, Aveiro, Coimbra, and Braga will be under red warning starting at 18:00 today until 06:00 on Thursday. After that, the warning will shift to orange until 15:00 on Thursday due to wave conditions. The IPMA forecasts northwest waves reaching heights of seven to eight meters, with maximum heights potentially reaching up to 15 meters.
Related Incident
In a related note, a kitesurfer was rescued after being “carried away” by the wind in Lagos.
