Senior couple from Matunga drown at Goa’s Candolim beach

The incident occurred at 11am on Friday when four persons, part of a larger group of 14 people touring Goa, decided to go for a morning walk along the Candolim beach

PANAJI: A senior citizen couple who were taking a stroll along Goa’s Candolim beach on Friday morning drowned after being swept away by high waves, police said.

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The incident occurred at 11am on Friday when four persons, part of a larger group of 14 people touring Goa, decided to go for a morning walk along the Candolim beach.

“While walking on the beach, three of the four persons were swept away by waves. Locals who were present there rushed into the sea immediately and rescued one lady, identified as Kalpana Parekh, 68, who is currently being treated at the Goa Medical College and Hospital,” superintendent of police Akshat Kaushal said.

Rescuers also retrieved Parekh’s companions – identified as Prakash Doshi, 73, and Harshita Doshi, 69, both residents of Matunga in Mumbai – but they were declared dead.

Goa’s beaches are closed for swimming during the monsoon months and the lifeguarding agency has urged the public to avoid swimming off beaches due to rough sea conditions, including dangerous rip currents and high tides, in addition to strong winds. Currently, the entire west coast stretching from Palghar in Maharashtra through Udupi in Karnataka is under a severe high wave alert, with waves expected reach 4-4.3 meters.

An advisory has also been issued urging visitors to avoid rocky areas, cliffs and hills along the shoreline in Goa. During the monsoon, these locations become especially dangerous due to their slippery surfaces. The sea also experiences increased wave height, intensity and frequency, significantly raising the risk of beachgoers being swept into the turbulent waters, the lifeguarding agency Drishti said.