Catalonia records 43 drowning deaths this summer, highest total since at least 2014

Catalonia recorded 43 drowning deaths during the 2026 summer bathing season, the highest total since at least 2014, according to figures compiled by Civil Protection.

The toll is 17 higher than for the same period last year and one more than the previous record of 42, recorded in 2022.

Since the bathing season began on June 15, 27 people have drowned at beaches, 11 in swimming pools and five in inland waters.

Men accounted for 24 of the victims and women for 12, while seven were minors.

Three children died at Arrabassada beach in Tarragona at the start of the season.

Another girl died on July 7 in a swimming pool at a municipal complex in Balaguer, while another died in a hotel pool in Calella, in the Maresme region, on July 20.

In mid-July, two more girls drowned while swimming in the River Ter near Manlleu.

The majority of drowning victims were over 60, with 27 deaths in that age group. 

Of the 11 people who drowned in swimming pools this summer, including two children under six, only one died in a municipal pool. The other deaths occurred in private pools, including a residential community pool, and a hotel pool.

A total of 27 people drowned at beaches this summer, making it the second-deadliest bathing season at Catalan beaches on record, behind 2019, when 29 people died.