British tourist drowns during scuba dive off popular beach

A British scuba diver has died off the coast of Lanzarote.

The 59-year-old got into difficulty at a small sandy cove called Playa Chica in the tourist resort of Puerto del Carmen.

Emergency medical responders tried to revive him after he was pulled out of the water and they discovered he had gone into cardiac arrest.

They were unable to save him and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The victim has not yet been named publicly.

The alarm was raised just after 12.30pm yesterday at Playa Chica, the most southerly beach in Puerto del Carmen which is famed for its amazing snorkelling.

A spokesman for a regional government-run emergency response coordination centre said overnight: ‘A 59-year-old scuba diver has died following an incident at Playa Chica in the municipality of Tias.

‘The callers said a scuba diver who was unconscious and needed emergency medical assistance had been pulled from the water.

‘Emergency responders discovered he was in cardiac arrest when they arrived at the scene and practiced CPR on him without obtaining positive results.

‘He was pronounced dead at the scene.

‘The Civil Guard is preparing a report on the incident. Local police and firefighters were also mobilised.’

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