Brit vacationer, 39, drowns in Bali after being dragged out to sea in rip present
A British tourist has drowned after being dragged out to sea in a rip current in Bali.
The 39-year-old was on holiday when he went swimming at Nyang-Nyang Beach where it is believed he was pulled away by the current.
His body was discovered floating near the Pecatu village early Monday morning, where two tourists helped pull him ashore.
Paramedics arrived at the scene where they confirmed the man was dead before taking him to hospital for a post-mortem examination.
Authorities said they were investigating the cause of death.
Nyoman Sidakarya, Head of the Denpasar Search and Rescue Office, said: ‘The search and rescue standby officer on duty received information from the Pecatu community officer requesting evacuation assistance regarding the discovery of a body in the middle of the sea.
‘The evacuation involved several agencies, including the Denpasar Search and Rescue Office, the Water Police, South Kuta Police, Pecatu village authorities, Balawista South Kuta lifeguards, and members of the local community.’
Last September, another Brit also tragically drowned after being swept out to sea by a rip current while holidaying in Bali.
Paramedics arrived at the scene where they confirmed the man was dead before taking him to hospital for a post-mortem examination
Harrison Nada-Kontounas, 23, died after a rip dragged him away from friends at Bali’s Legian Point at Kuta Beach.
While his two friends managed to make it back to shore, Nada-Kontounas was caught in the surf, battling strong currents and 30km/h winds.
Lifeguards tried to reach him but missed by just a metre.
Nada-Kontounas’s body was found two days later about 3.2km offshore from where he was last seen.
In a statement given to Daily Mail, the family confirmed news of their son’s death in the hours after he was found.
‘With deep sadness, we confirm that Harrison’s body was recovered today, approximately two miles offshore from where he was last seen,’ the statement read.
Nada-Kontounas’ mum expressed her family’s grief and paid tribute to her ‘gentle, kind and funny’ son.
‘Harrison was one of the most gentle, kind, and funny young men you could ever meet,’ she wrote.
‘Harrison’s life, though heartbreakingly short, was filled with love, light, and friendship. He is one who left us far too early, but whose spirit will never be forgotten.’
His mum also thanked those who tirelessly searched for her son, including his friends, strangers on the beach and Balinese locals, in the hours after he went missing.
In a separate statement, the family also thanked a local lifeguard who was the one to come within metres of Nada-Kontounas and was also the one to recover his body.
‘Marlon was the lifeguard who, in those first desperate minutes, came within a metre of reaching Harrison,’ the statement read.
‘It was also Marlon who later recovered Harrison’s body from the sea. The family wish to acknowledge his courage, persistence, and humanity during this tragedy.’
A friend of the family who witnessed Marlon’s efforts claimed: ‘He truly wanted to save a life, and he truly tried’.
