A 37-year-old man was rescued at sea this afternoon near Albufereta after a drifting board was spotted by a vigilant eye on Rocafel. Local police marine units quickly identified a person in distress and coordinated a response that kept him afloat until help could reach him. The man, who later admitted he did not know how to swim well, was evacuated from the water and transported to hospital for evaluation and care due to signs of hypothermia and dizziness.
The call came in around six o’clock when authorities on Rocafel received reports of a drifting surfboard and a person apparently struggling in the surf. A rapid multi-agency response was launched to secure the area, stabilize the situation, and bring the individual to safety without further risk to responders or bystanders.
Three patrols from the Local Police along with the Drone Unit, plus firefighters from SPEIS, deployed both on land and at sea to establish a secure perimeter and coordinate the rescue. The man was drawn from the water by a Local Police Marine Division officer and brought ashore for medical assessment. The surfboard was seized as it could not be traced to its rightful owner at the time of recovery. The operation underscored the value of swift interagency cooperation and the readiness of coastal services to respond to improvised watercraft in distress. The incident, documented by local authorities, highlights ongoing efforts to improve water safety and rapid intervention along the Alicante coastline. Source: Local Police Marine Division, with follow-up notes from the SPEIS firefighting teams and the Drone Unit.