British man, 58, dies after being pulled from sea near holiday resort in Portugal

A British man has died after he was pulled from the sea near a holiday resort in Portugal. 

Two lifeguards spotted the 58-year-old floating in the water on Wednesday morning and brought his body ashore before they began performing CPR. 

Paramedics arrived shortly after and took over efforts to resuscitate him, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

The incident took place at Pintadinho Beach, a tranquil Blue Flag beach nearest the fishing village of Ferragudo which is framed by clay-coloured cliffs. 

It was unclear on Sunday morning whether the British man was a holidaymaker or lived in the area.   

Whether he was alone when he got into difficulty, or with family or friends, is also unknown. 

The alarm was raised at around 9.20am on Wednesday and although news of the incident started emerging on the day, police only confirmed his nationality on Sunday morning. 

Trained psychologists have been mobilised to provide support to the victim’s family.

A spokesman for Portugal’s National Maritime Authority said: ‘The body of a 58-year-old English national man has been found floating at Pintadinho beach, in the municipality of Lagoa, with the causes of the incident unknown.

‘Following an alert received at 9:19am on Wednesday from a member of the public reporting a body floating in the water, personnel from the Local Maritime Police Command of Portimao were activated, along with teams from the INEM National Medical Emergency Institute, the Lagoa Volunteer Firefighters and the Judicial Police.

‘Upon arrival at the scene, it was found that the victim, a 58-year-old English national man, had already been removed from the water by two lifeguards who began resuscitation efforts until the arrival of the emergency response teams.

‘As it was not possible to reverse the situation, the man’s death was certified by the INEM doctor and his body was transported to the Barlavento Algarve Forensic Medicine Institute by the firefighters following work at the scene by police.

‘The Maritime Police Psychology Office was activated and is providing support to the victim’s family.’

There is no suggestion at this stage that the man’s death is being treated as a crime.

The post-mortem examination will determine whether the unnamed British man died from drowning or suffered some other kind of contributory health problem.

The Foreign Office has been approached for further comment.  

On Saturday morning in a separate incident, a 64-year-old Irish holidaymaker died after getting into difficulty after the alarm was raised just after 10.30am yesterday.

The incident occurred  in the sea at Prainha Beach in Alvor which is also close to Portimao – just a 20-minute drive west of Pintadinho Beach heading towards Lagos.