British tourist throws himself into the sea ‘in front of his wife after being knocked over by a wave’ when Storm Nelson hits during his Spanish holiday

A British tourist has died in northern Spain as Storm Nelson ravages parts of the country.

He lost his life after falling into the sea from a wharf at the mouth of a river.

The tragedy occurred in an old fishing village that is now a marina called San Esteban de Pravia, part of the municipality of Muros de Nalon, Asturias, Spain.

The unnamed Briton, believed to be around 50 years old, had traveled to the area with his wife for a short holiday, according to the local mayor.

His body was recovered just before 2pm this afternoon, about an hour after the alarm was first raised.

According to a local report, he had fallen from the end of a breakwater after taking a walk with his wife.

It said he was eventually knocked over by a wave and hit his head after climbing the breakwater wall.

According to unconfirmed reports this afternoon, he was spotted taking photos before being knocked into the water.

A spokesperson for a regional government-run emergency coordination center said: ‘The Asturias Fire Rescue Group on board the medicalized helicopter of the Emergency Service of the Principality of Asturias (SEPA) rescued the lifeless body of a man found in the sea near the breakwater of San Esteban, in Muros del Nalón.

‘His body was evacuated to the breakwater itself, where the Guardia Civil took charge of the situation.

‘The dead man was located in the San Esteban estuary and was evacuated to the helicopter using a crane mechanism using 30 meters of cable.

‘The Asturias Emergency Coordination Center received the call at one minute after 1pm saying that a man had just fallen into the sea.

‘The rescue group and the emergency response helicopter were mobilized together with another team of firefighters.

‘The Red Cross and the coast guard were also warned, but ultimately did not intervene.

“The victim’s body was located, recovered and taken to the breakwater at 1.48pm.”

According to local reports, the British man was in the area for the first time after traveling with his partner to Muros de Nalon from the city of Valladolid, 200 miles (320 kilometers) south.

They had arrived yesterday and rented an apartment and planned to spend Easter there.

The woman from whom they rented the flat is said to have spoken to them shortly after their arrival about the bad weather of the following days.

It is not yet clear whether the deceased man’s partner is also British and whether the couple lived in Great Britain or Spain.

Mayor Celestino Novo of Muros de Nalon said: ‘They had come to spend a week’s holidays in our municipality and this tragedy happened. I’m so devastated.’

A witness revealed himself El Comercio: ‘The man stood up for a moment to look at the waves and when he turned to return to his wife, who had stayed further back, a wave swept him away.’

The tourist was one of four people killed today during Storm Nelson in Spain.

A woman fell into the sea at the port of Cudillero, also in Asturias, and died after being hit by rocks, reported Telecinco.

A teenager died after drowning in the east coast city of Tarragona, as did a 30-year-old German man who saw him in trouble and tried to save him.

The Emergency Service of the Principality of Asturias (SEPA) has advised residents and tourists not to go near cliffs, promenades and dangerous areas where strong gusts of wind can cause falls and be swept out to sea on the coast.

This is a breaking news story. More to follow