In India, a British tourist died in an accident while body surfing on Varkala Beach in Kerala. The police say that the man was an expert body surfer. This happened after a rough wave swept him and crashed him onto the dune, causing severe head and neck injuries.
It has been reported that at a beachside hotel, he was holidaying with his wife, having arrived in Varkala the day before the fatal incident. An eyewitness told local media that from morning he along with another lady was seen swimming and body surfing at the beach.
Local time at around 11.30 am the accident happened, while there were a lot of people at the beach. One of the lifeguards who was on duty at the time of the incident said that the person was body surfing on the waves when a rough wave swept him and crashed him onto the dune. He suffered injuries on the head and neck and was given first aid and rushed to the hospital. The lifeguard also said that two days before the incident the beach had been calm with visitors allowed on it.
A police spokesman said that they have completed the inquest and the body has been sent for postmortem at Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram. From the preliminary investigation, the accident occurred due to the rough waves while he was body surfing. This incident has been reported to the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO), the Indian High Commission, and the British High Commission in Delhi. A UK Foreign Office spokesperson confirmed that they will support the family of a British man who died in India. Friday’s incident came just two weeks after another British tourist drowned while on holiday in India, having been swept out to sea with his wife. Vijay Tulshidas Daswani, 72, died at Talpona Beach in Goa. Police officer Harish Raut Dessai, from the Canacona police station, said that by a very strong wave,the couple was dragged out to sea. Lifeguards hurried to save the couple and brought them to shore. While the woman survived, the man could not be saved.
