A beach in Jbeil, on March 11, 2024. (Credit: Layal Dagher/L'Orient-Le Jour)
BEIRUT — Members of the Lebanese Civil Defense continued their search on Monday for two people lost in the waters off of Jbeil public beach while swimming on Sunday. Rescue teams say that one man drowned, while the other two remain missing, L'Orient Today's correspondent in North Lebanon reported.
The sea was rough on Sunday due to incoming bad weather.
Civil Defense had initially reported on Sunday that the two missing swimmers had been part of a group of five who all encountered difficulties out in the water, but on Monday, Samir Yazbeck, head of the Civil Defense Maritime Rescue Unit, disclosed that the group was made up of a total of nine young people.
Members of the unit managed to save one swimmer on Sunday, but one young man died, and "the search is underway for the two young men who are still missing." The five others made it out safely after struggling to reach the shores again.
Civil Defense head Raymond Khattar said his unit "is continuing the search and rescue operation around the clock for the two missing young men, in cooperation with sea commandos in the army and air force, despite the danger that affects helicopters in such climatic conditions."
Yazbeck said that "the drowning may have occurred when some of them tried to help each other when the accident occurred."
With the winter season coming to an end, people are returning to the beaches, but certain conditions have caused many near-drowning incidents and nearly a dozen drowning incidents.
On April 26, the body of a man was recovered from the sea off the coast of Sour in South Lebanon. That same day, five other swimmers were saved from drowning off Jbeil. On Monday afternoon, the body of a man was found at Raouche beach in Beirut.
Yazbeck called on citizens "not to swim when the [waves] are rough, as it is today when there are strong sea currents." According to the head of the Maritime Rescue Unit, the annual number of deaths by drowning averages around 150.
He also appealed to "the owners of tourist establishments and resorts to prevent citizens from approaching the sea and to put up a red flag to alert them to the danger of the waves in order to prevent accidents and deaths."
Jbeil mayor Wissam Zaarour, stressed that “the municipality cannot close off the beach, as it is a public right,” pointing out that “warning signs are placed at the beginning of the tourist season, which has not yet begun.”
He pointed out that "the municipality submitted a request to the Public Works Ministry to place lifeguards on the beaches to assist anyone who faces [drowning] incidents."