A 14-year-old teenager from the UK is said to be in a “critical” condition in hospital following the incident yesterday at Lloret de Mar on the Costa Brava, Spain
The girl was rescued from the sea(Image: lloretgaceta.com)
A British teenager is fighting for her life after being pulled out of the sea at a holiday resort where she was drowning.
The 14-year-old is said to be in a “critical” condition in hospital following the incident yesterday at Lloret de Mar on the Costa Brava, Spain. She was admitted to an intensive care unit at Josep Trueta Hospital in the Catalan city of Girona after going into cardiac arrest.
The youngster is understood to have got into difficulties after being swept out to sea by a wave as she was in the water with other friends from the UK. Two police officers saved her life after jumping into the water and rescuing her.
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Three ambulances raced to the scene after the alarm was raised around 11.30am yesterday. The sea was said to have been choppy at the time with strong currents.
Emergency responders performed CPR on the teenager to revive her on the shoreline, with the area cordoned off by police, before she was rushed to hospital. Footage from the scene published by Spanish media showed a man believed to be a local police officer who risked his life jumping into the sea to save her being comforted by colleagues after his life-saving feat.
He dropped to the sand looking very emotional before being led away. Firefighters are also said to have gone into the water to help him pull the girl out. Local reports said the girl was on a foreign study trip and was staying with classmates at a four-star hotel in Lloret called Maria del Mar Hotel.
Carme Rigart, who saw the incident, said: “I was able to see the whole scene from the balcony of my flat opposite the beach. Very good work by the local police, fire brigade, the regional Mossos d’Esquadra police and, above all, Civil Protection workers.
“They managed to rescue the young girl and performed CPR, which saved her life. Hopefully, she will not suffer any lasting effects.”
Another witness, Cintiha Schenfeld, added: “I was there, and the police were among the first to arrive. They did not allow anyone else to enter the water because there were already two officers in, and until the fire brigade arrived with the appropriate equipment, no one else was allowed in.”
Tragically two British siblings died after getting into trouble while swimming off the Spanish coast in July. Authorities confirmed the boy aged 11 and girl, 13, were swimming off Salou, Tarragona. Both boys drowned, Spanish officials said, while their father was rescued alive. Police are not treating the incident as a criminal matter.
“Two siblings, of British nationality and aged 11 and 13, drowned this evening on the Llarga beach in Salou (Tarragona),” Catalonia’s Civil Protection said. “The father of the minors, who had also entered the water, was rescued alive.” Their dad reportedly made a desperate attempt to save them and had to be rescued himself after nearly drowning.
Both youngsters were in cardiac arrest by the time emergency help arrived in the form of seven land units from the Medical Emergency System (SEM), the Salou Local Police, Catalonian police and the fire brigade.
Psychologists from the SEM were provided to help the family. A Civil Protection spokesman said lifeguards had already left the beach for the day when the tragedy occurred just before 9pm on July 29. The British family involved are understood to have been staying at a nearby hotel.