The Balearic rescue and lifeguard services have carried out 1,291 interventions

Since the Decree regulating the minimum safety and protection measures that beaches and bathing areas in the Balearic Islands must comply with came into force in 2005, the lifeguard, rescue and first aid services have recovered 776 lives. These are record figures, according to the head of the 112 emergency service, Joan Pol.

According to data extracted from the Beaches Report 2023, the number of drowned persons recovered has been reduced. This has been possible thanks to the rapid action of the surveillance services, which has allowed people at risk to recover before exhaustion and cardiorespiratory arrest. This is a decrease of 36.8% compared to 2022 and 40% compared to 2021. 

There has also been a decrease in serious incidents compared to 2022, from 762 to 671, (411 in Mallorca, 103 in Menorca, 119 in Ibiza and 38 in Formentera). These data are a good result, taking into account that the bathing season has had many days suitable for bathing, with higher than average temperatures and with few days of storms or bad seas, or other risks such as the presence of jellyfish, marine pollution, etc. All these factors and the high influx of tourists have meant that many bathing areas have been at the limit of their capacity, with a maximum human load index in the Balearic Islands 5.04% higher than last year. 

In reference to the number of people killed on Balearic beaches, the figure has been reduced with a total of 36 (24 in Mallorca, 4 in Menorca, 7 in Ibiza and 1 in Formentera), 10 less than in 2022 and 12 more than in 2021. Outside lifeguard service hours there have been a total of 9 fatalities, one more than in 2022 and two more than in 2021.

This year there have been 1,291 aquatic interventions with rescues on the beaches of the Balearic Islands, 28% more than last year, of which 902 have occurred due to lack of knowledge of the bather: 402 have been due to sea currents, 229 due to strong waves and 161 for having moved away from the coast. 

Another figure that is reflected in the report is the number of incidents due to jellyfish stings, which this year has been 25,615. The number of assistances due to spider fish stings has been 321. Moreover, this year the number of jellyfish sightings has increased, with 3.119 cases, 155,6% more than last season. 

Of the 129,087 self-protection actions carried out, 32,745 were related to users in dangerous areas, 29,982 to non-motorised boats in the bathing area, 29,423 to bathers in the boat channel, 12,699 to bathers swimming in the channel and 12,699 to bathers swimming in the canal. 699 with bathers swimming outside the bathing area, 12,619 with motor boats inside the bathing area, 5,883 with bathers in buoyed areas, 5,290 with bathers taken out of the water with a red flag, 438 with lost persons and 8 with divers.