Canary Islands Drowning Deaths Jump 18% in Early 2026, Most Amid Warnings
The Canary Islands recorded 13 drowning deaths in January and February 2026, an 18% increase from the previous year, with 92% of incidents occurring despite dangerous sea condition warnings.
The Canary Islands saw a concerning rise in drowning deaths during January and February 2026. Data from the 'Canarias, 1500 Km de Costa' association, which works to prevent water accidents, shows that 13 people drowned across the islands in these two months. Six of these deaths happened in February alone.
This is an 18% increase compared to the same time in 2025, when 11 people died. The total number of water-related incidents also went up, affecting 40 people this year – 29% more than the 31 incidents reported in the same period last year.
What makes this situation even more serious is that 92% of the drownings happened when the Canary Islands government had already issued warnings or pre-warnings about dangerous sea conditions. These official alerts are meant to keep people safe, but they didn't seem to stop most of the victims from going into the water.
Besides the deaths, 17 other people were injured in these incidents: three were in critical condition, three had serious injuries, five had moderate injuries, and six had minor injuries. Thankfully, another 10 people were rescued without harm.
Most of those who died were men (10 out of 13) and adults (8 out of 13, including two over 60 and three whose age wasn't known). Seven of the victims were foreigners (two Germans, one American, one Venezuelan, one Belgian, and two whose nationality wasn't specified). Three were Spanish, and the origin of the remaining three was not available.
The activities people were doing before drowning varied. Six cases were listed as 'other,' which covers accidental falls from places like docks, cliffs, or promenades, as well as water sports accidents. Three victims were swimmers, two were divers, and one was a fisherman. The activity for one case was not detailed.
Most accidents (62%) happened at beaches. Natural pools accounted for 18%, ports and coastal areas for 17%, and swimming pools for 3%. The afternoon was the most dangerous time, with 62% of accidents occurring then, compared to 15% in the morning and 8% at night.
The 'Canarias, 1500 Km de Costa' association gathers this information from official emergency services like 112 Canarias, Guardia Civil, National Police, Maritime Rescue, Local Police, Firefighters, and Civil Protection. This makes their findings reliable and highlights the urgent need to improve safety along the Canary Islands' coast.