Autopsy shows German tourist drowned in Peyia

The death of a 67-year-old German tourist in Peyia earlier this week was caused by drowning, an autopsy showed on Wednesday.

The incident took place on Monday around 4:20pm when the man, who was on a short vacation to Cyprus with his wife, had gone into the water at a beach in Peyia for a swim, Paphos distrcit. 

Lifeguards were seen rushing to the man’s aid, who was unconscious, and pulled him out of the water. They immediately began cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but failed to revive him.

He was rushed to the Emergency Room at Paphos General Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead on arrival.

State forensic pathologist Eleni Antoniou, who conducted a post mortem on Wednesday, pointed to drowning as the cause of death.

According to initial but unconfirmed reports, beachgoers heard a man’s voice in the water calling for help. No further details were made available as to what might have caused him to drown prior to falling unconscious.

The man died “from suffocation resulting from aspiration of water,” Antoniou said.

The couple was scheduled to leave the island next week. A number of fatal drowning incidents have been reported over the summer, with many senior citizens being among the victims.