TRAGEDY was narrowly averted in the Canary Islands over the weekend after a daring rescue operation was launched to save a father and his 8-year-old daughter who were swept into the sea.
The lucky pair were winched out of the Atlantic Ocean by helicopter on Sunday afternoon after a powerful wave knocked them into open water on Tenerife’s western coast.
According to witnesses, the father and daughter were able to climb onto a jagged rock formation after being struck by the breaker, which came as the area was under a coastal alert due to strong swell and large waves of between two and four metres.
Dramatic footage shared by Tenerife’s emergency rescue unit shows the risk-filled moment that a harness was hung down from the low-flying chopper.
The pair were then lifted away from danger before receiving treatment from paramedics for minor injuries and cuts.
Local police, firefighters and officers from the Guardia Civil also rushed to the scene to help the rescue effort.
The duo got into difficulty after being knocked into the sea from the Charco de Isla Cangrejo natural pool in Los Gigantes.
The rock poll has developed a deadly reputation in recent months with six fatalities linked to the site in just the past ten months.
READ MORE: WATCH: Moment deadly wave washes away tourists as they pose for selfies in Tenerife rock pool
In December, four foreign tourists died after defying an official closure order to swim in the popular beauty post, which has become famous on social media despite it becoming extremely dangerous during high tides and heavy swell.
Two Romanians and one Slovakian national were among the quartet who perished after being swept away by a ‘giant’ wave.
In early November, three people died and at least 15 others were injured in separate incidents as the Canary Islands were battered by rough seas.
One woman – reported as a 79-year-old Dutch citizen – died after suffering a heart attack when she was pushed off a pier by a wave in Puerto de la Cruz, a popular resort on the island’s northern coast.
Elsewhere, rescue services airlifted a man to hospital after he fell into water in La Guancha, less than 10km west of Puerto de la Cruz.
However, the man was later pronounced dead in hospital.
Another man died after he was found floating in the water off a beach in El Medano, less than 5km from the island’s busy southern airport.
Officials are urging the public to avoid natural pools, breakwaters and exposed coastal areas whenever a coastal pre-alert is in place.
Click here to read more Spain News from The Olive Press.
