Enlarge image
Bingen am Rhein: father drowns while walking
Photo: IMAGO
A family trip to the Rhine island of Ilmenau ended fatally for a father: he was hit by a wave while walking and drowned in the Rhine.
On Thursday, the 49-year-old man was traveling with his eleven and eight-year-old children and another man on the Rhine beach near Bingen-Gaulsheim, the police said.
The group then tried to reach the foothills of the Rhine island of Ilmenau via a so-called "Buhne", a narrow stone wall.
Then a strong wave hit the groyne, which tore all four into the water.
The children and the companion could have saved themselves back on the stage.
But the father was pulled under the water by the strong current and the suction of the river and drowned.
He could only be recovered dead.
Again and again people drown in rivers like the Rhine, mostly while bathing.
In 2021 there were almost 300. People underestimate the current, which can be dangerous even for experienced swimmers.
