One Briton dies, another injured in separate falls
The body of a young British tourist who died after falling off the parapet of the hotel at which he was staying on the Ionian island of Zakynthos was flown to the UK on Thursday after a local coroner conducted an autopsy to determine the circumstances under which the accident took place.
The unnamed tourist was walking along the parapet on the hotel’s facade in the resort town of Laganas when he fell off, according to reports. Eye witnesses said he tried to grab hold of a cable but fell four meters to the ground when it snapped, suffering major injuries. The accident occurred on Wednesday, July 24, and the young man died at a hospital in nearby Rio in western Greece on Monday night. His body was released to his family in the UK on Thursday pending a report by a local coroner. No details regarding his identity were made public.
Meanwhile, another British tourist had a lucky escape in the same resort, when he fell off the balcony of his third-floor hotel room while balancing on the railing.
The 20-year-old escaped the tumble with a few minor injuries after landing on an overhang that broke his fall.
The British Embassy in Athens is running a campaign to warn thousands of young Britons who flock to the country’s island’s every summer of the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption.
A number of tragic incidents that have occurred at holiday resorts over the years involving young Britons have been attributed to such excess, including the fatal stabbing last month of a 19-year-old during a brawl with other Britons in Malia, Crete.