Germany: Several swimming accidents on the warm weekend

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Rescue operation (symbol image)

Photo: Jens Büttner/ dpa

Thanks to the high temperatures, bathing lakes are a popular weekend destination.

Accidents happen all the time.

Two people died in swimming accidents in Berlin on Saturday.

First, a 17-year-old was reported missing at the Weißen See, as a spokesman for the Berlin fire department said.

The rescue workers found the teenager in the evening after a 20-minute search in the lake and initiated immediate resuscitation measures - but without success.

About an hour and a half later, the fire brigade was called to the airport lake because of a missing 59-year-old.

His wife had wondered why her husband had not returned from his bathing trip, as the fire department spokesman said.

Divers managed to find the man floating in the water relatively quickly.

The resuscitation measures were also unsuccessful in this case.

He had probably been floating in the water for several hours and had gone under - apparently unnoticed by other bathers.

It was initially unclear how the two swimming accidents came about.

Fatal swimming accident in Hürth

A tragic accident also occurred in North Rhine-Westphalia.

There, an 18-year-old was reported missing in Hürth.

As the police and prosecutors announced on Sunday, the young man went under on Saturday afternoon while swimming in a lake.

Firefighters found him about an hour later.

Rescue divers were also on duty.

The teenager was resuscitated but later died in hospital, according to authorities.

The accident happened on the beach of a lido.

There were no indications of culpable behavior by other people, it said.

An accident is to be assumed.

Temperatures of more than 30 degrees prevailed in large parts of Germany this weekend.

Bathing areas were therefore often very busy.

asc/AFP/dpa