A 30-year-old German national encountered “difficulties in the water” at Tonel beach in the municipality of Odemira and was rescued by bystanders on Tuesday, reported the National Maritime Authority (AMN).
In a statement, the authority indicated that an alert for “a man in trouble at an unguarded and difficult-to-access beach” was received at 2:25 p.m. from the Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center in Lisbon (MRCC Lisbon).
Following the alert, “elements from the Sines Maritime Police Local Command, the ‘SeaWatch’ Project, lifeboat station crew from Sines,” as well as volunteers from Odemira Fire Department and an aircraft from the National Institute for Medical Emergency (INEM) were immediately activated.
Upon arrival, it was observed that the “victim had been promptly removed from the water and assisted on the beach, with resuscitation maneuvers performed by bystanders present, successfully reversing the situation.”
The man was in a “difficult-to-access area”, necessitating rescue by sea by the Lifeboat Station crew to the Barcas port, “where a fire department ambulance awaited.”
Subsequently, the German individual was transported to a hospital unit by an INEM helicopter.
The Sines Maritime Police Local Command took charge of the incident.
It is noteworthy that, according to the 2024 Operational Balance of the National Maritime Authority, last year alone there were “634 rescue outings, resulting in the saving of 699 lives.”
During this bathing season, between May 1 and July 31, the AMN recorded six fatalities, 513 rescues, and 1,215 first aid actions on Portuguese beaches.
AMN stated that four of the six deaths were due to drowning, one due to sudden illness, and another from unknown causes.
The drowning deaths occurred at Carcavelos Beach (guarded beach) in Cascais municipality, Lisbon district, on the international section of the Minho River (unguarded maritime zone) in Caminha, Viana do Castelo district, and at Pedrógão Beach, Leiria district, which was unguarded at the time of the accident.
Officially, the bathing season starts on June 1, but municipalities are free to begin it before or after that date.
