Costa Rica News – Thirty-two tourists, most of them Costa Rican, were left thankfully unharmed when a strong wave turned over the boat they were travelling in as part of a whale and dolphin watching tour in Playa Uvita in the Osa canton, Puntarenas.
The incident happened at 9.50am on the 15th September, and fortunately, nobody was hurt.
Dalia Ovares from the Red Cross in Ciudad Cortés, said that the accident happened 200m from the beach, where the sea isn’t yet too deep. This meant that all passengers could be rescued quickly.
The rescue team noted that every single one of the 32 passengers was wearing a life jacket. It was also fortunate that at a time when a number of other tour operators were in the area and so could help out immediately. Ovares said that none of the tourists needed any medical attention.
According to witnesses, a 2m high wave hit one side of the boat, causing it to tip right over.
The National Emergency Commission (CNE) had warned that on Sunday and Monday, the whole of the Pacific coast would be seeing particularly strong waves. The highest points were predicted for Monday and Tuesday, when waves could reach heights of 3m.
In this season, the beaches at Osa get large numbers of tourists, seeing as this is where all dolphin and whale watching excursions leave from. The trips go out up to 15km from the beach and last around 2 hours.
Translated by Leah Hendre from La Nacion
