After the triple death of beachgoers in the sea off Zvërnec, two more people drowned during the past 24 hours.
Today a 17-year-old girl, thought by the police to be Russian tourist, drowned off the beach in Ksamil, Saranda.
Yesterday evening, a 35-year-old man lost his life near the beach of Velipoja. According to the police announcement, the tourist from Kosovo had entered the water to save his wife, but lost his life in the process.
Regarding the tragedy in Zvërnec, the state institutions including the Prime Minister claimed to hold no responibility for the absence of lifeguards, as the beach was considered to be “wild.”
The beaches of Ksamil and Velipoja, however, are both featured on the list of certified beaches of the National Seaside Agency (AKB). Nevertheless, the entire beach of Saranda has only one lifeguard tower, which is out of use. In Velipoja there are no lifeguards whatsoever.
It is unknown what happened to the 41 lifeguards trained by the AKB in 2014, nor whether state institutions will once again claim that drowning tourists should sort out their own issues.
