Algarve and Alentejo recorded nine deaths during the bathing season
Nine of the 30 deaths recorded by the National Maritime Authority (AMN) between May 1 and September 30 occurred in the Algarve and Alentejo regions. Albufeira and Mértola were the most affected municipalities, with two fatalities each, during a period in which 1418 rescues and 2609 first aid actions were carried out throughout the country.
The report on the first five months of the 2026 bathing season, released by the National Maritime Authority, reveals that the Algarve recorded six fatalities, while the Alentejo region recorded three. In the South, the cases were distributed across supervised and unsupervised beaches, as well as unsupervised river areas.
The distribution of accidents reveals a reality that is particularly relevant to beach safety: 11 deaths occurred on supervised beaches and another 11 on unsupervised beaches. Five people died on beaches that, at the time of the accident, were outside their respective beach surveillance period, while another three deaths occurred in unsupervised maritime areas.
In the case of the 17 drownings, the National Maritime Authority explains that four occurred on guarded beaches, eight on unguarded beaches, two on beaches outside the bathing season and without lifeguards at the time of the accident, and three in other unguarded maritime areas.
Of the 12 deaths attributed to sudden illness, six occurred on lifeguarded beaches, three in other unguarded maritime areas, and three on beaches that were outside the bathing lifeguard period.
In addition to the fatalities, the report also details the scale of assistance provided on Portuguese beaches over these five months.
Between May 1st and September 30th, 1418 rescues and 2609 first aid actions were carried out, which together correspond to 4027 rescue or assistance interventions.
The figures now released refer to maritime, river, or lake beaches that fall under the jurisdiction of the National Maritime Authority and cover a period from the beginning of May to the end of September, therefore including accidents that occurred before or after the official surveillance period for some beaches.
In the Algarve, the first deaths occurred in June, both in Albufeira and due to drowning. On June 11th, a person died at Praia do Peneco and, on the 27th, another at Praia de São Rafael. In both cases, these were supervised beaches.
On July 23, a person died due to sudden illness at Praia do Cabeço , in Vila Real de Santo António, classified by the AMN (National Maritime Authority) as an unguarded maritime beach.
September brought three more deaths to the Algarve beaches. On the 23rd, a person drowned at Praia do Pintadinho, in Lagoa, and four days later, on the 27th, another victim died due to sudden illness at Praia da Bordeira , in Aljezur. Both are listed in the National Maritime Authority’s report as supervised beaches.
In addition to these cases, there was also the death on September 26th at Praia da Prainha , which the AMN (National Maritime Authority) includes among the accidents that occurred on unsupervised beaches, pointing to drowning as the probable cause.
The Guadiana River claimed two lives in Mértola.
In the Alentejo region, two of the three fatal accidents occurred at the same location: Azenhas do Guadiana, in Mértola. The first death occurred on June 7th and the second on July 4th. In both cases, the National Maritime Authority points to drowning as the probable cause and identifies the location as an unsupervised river or lake beach.
The third fatality recorded in the Alentejo region occurred on July 28th, at Praia de São Torpes Sul, in Sines. The person was on an unguarded beach, and the probable cause of death, according to the AMN (National Maritime Authority), was a sudden illness.
Thus, of the nine deaths that occurred in the Algarve and Alentejo regions, five were likely caused by drowning and four by sudden illness. Four occurred on supervised beaches and the remaining five on unsupervised beaches or river areas.
Nationally, the National Maritime Authority recorded 30 fatal accidents between May 1st and September 30th. Of these, 17 were likely caused by drowning, 12 resulted from sudden illness, and in one case, the cause is still unknown.
The distribution of accidents reveals a reality that is particularly relevant to beach safety: 11 deaths occurred on supervised beaches and another 11 on unsupervised beaches. Five people died on beaches that, at the time of the accident, were outside their respective beach surveillance period, while another three deaths occurred in unsupervised maritime areas.
In the case of the 17 drownings, the National Maritime Authority explains that four occurred on guarded beaches, eight on unguarded beaches, two on beaches outside the bathing season and without lifeguards at the time of the accident, and three in other unguarded maritime areas.
Of the 12 deaths attributed to sudden illness, six occurred on lifeguarded beaches, three in other unguarded maritime areas, and three on beaches that were outside the bathing lifeguard period.
In addition to the fatalities, the report also details the scale of assistance provided on Portuguese beaches over these five months.
Between May 1st and September 30th, 1418 rescues and 2609 first aid actions were carried out, which together correspond to 4027 rescue or assistance interventions.
The figures now released refer to maritime, river, or lake beaches that fall under the jurisdiction of the National Maritime Authority and cover a period from the beginning of May to the end of September, therefore including accidents that occurred before or after the official surveillance period for some beaches.