Three people died and 15 were injured yesterday on the island of Tenerife in various sea-related incidents. This happened on a day when the Canary Islands were on a state of alert due to coastal phenomena, EFE reported, quoted by BTA.
The first incident occurred on a beach in the Santa Cruz de Tenerife area, when six French tourists fell into the water, swept away by a wave. Emergency teams sent by the 112 Emergency and Security Coordination Center arrived at the scene with a medical helicopter and two ambulances from the local emergency service. The medical helicopter transported a woman with moderate injuries to hospital. The other victims had minor injuries, but four of them were also admitted to hospital, and a fifth received medical treatment on the spot. According to local police, the tourists did not follow the safety signs in the area.
Later, the body of a man was found in the water off the southern part of the island. The man was brought ashore in cardiac arrest and, despite attempts by rescuers and then emergency medical personnel to resuscitate him, he was pronounced dead.
Then, a new wave in the port of Puerto de la Cruz, in the north of the island of Tenerife, swept ten people into the water, causing one woman to drown.
A helicopter took a man who had fallen into the water to the town of Guancha with serious injuries, but doctors only declared him dead on arrival at the hospital.
The 112 service reminded that the Canary Islands are in a state of pre-alert due to rough seas, and urged citizens to be extremely cautious, not to stand on the edges of piers or breakwaters and not to risk trying to take pictures near the place where the waves are breaking, and to follow the instructions of rescuers.
The storm "Funuon" has grown into a super typhoon and is approaching the Philippines, posing a threat of destructive winds and flooding, the FNA reported.
It is located 125 km east-northeast of the city of Virac, has sustained winds of 185 km/h with gusts of up to 230 km/h. It is moving west-northwest at 25 km/h and will reach the northern province of Aurora by tonight or tomorrow morning.
A few days ago, the Philippines was hit by another powerful typhoon, "Kalmaegi", which claimed the lives of more than 200 people. Nearly 3 million people were affected by "Kalmaegi", which caused some of the worst flooding in years, as well as landslides, in central provinces of the country.