British tourist dies while swimming off Greek island during intense heat

She fell unconscious after walking to the beach from her hotel.

A British holidaymaker has died after falling unconscious in extreme temperatures on a popular Greek island.

The tourist, a 66-year-old woman, collapsed while swimming in the sea in Skiathos yesterday afternoon.

She had been staying at a nearby hotel and went to Achladies beach to go for a swim, according to CNN Greece.

But she lost consciousness, reportedly due to the intense heat.

A lifeguard pulled her from the water onto the shore and a private doctor carried out CPR.

Emergency services took her in an ambulance to the Skiathos Health Centre but they were unable to revive her.

She was pronounced dead shortly after noon.

The woman is now expected to be transferred to Volos for an autopsy.

Temperatures in Skiathos soared to 33°C on Friday after an excessive heat warning was issued by the national meteorological service because of several days of hot weather.

Greek authorities also recently urged tourists to take extra care following a number of recent deaths related to the extreme heat.

Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said: ‘We appeal to the public to be particularly careful as over the next few days there is a very high risk of the outbreak of serious wildfires. Even one spark can cause a major catastrophe.’

It also comes after a string of British tourist deaths in Greece in recent weeks.

A 47-year-old woman was hit and killed by a car in front of her family in Chania, Crete, while on a walk on Monday.

Meanwhile, a 23-year-old British man died after falling from a balcony in Zante last week.

Earlier this month, a tourist died during a dive to a shipwreck near the northern city of Thessaloniki.

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