A woman has died on Southbourne beach in Devon after suffering a medical emergency while in the sea with her son. Dorset Police confirmed the death occurred on Monday afternoon, June 22, 2026.
Incident Unfolds on Southbourne Promenade
Police, paramedics, and coastguard crews responded to the promenade between Fisherman's Walk and Portman Ravine at around 2:21 pm. Witnesses reported seeing emergency services performing CPR on the woman after she was recovered from the water by members of the public.
A beach hut owner who called 999 said she saw the woman having a medical emergency in the water while with her son. Another beach hut owner told reporters: "They were doing CPR for ages and ages, for an awfully long time."
Emergency Response
Dorset Police temporarily blocked access across the promenade to allow emergency services to work safely. A helicopter landed on the beach, and the Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance took off at around 4:30 pm. Two ambulances, a police car, a police van, several coastguard officers, and around three council staff were at the scene.
A spokesperson for Dorset Police said: "At 2.21 pm on Monday 22 June 2026, Dorset Police was called to assist with a medical emergency at Southbourne promenade to clear an area to enable emergency services to attend safely. Sadly, a short time later a woman was pronounced dead at the scene. Her next of kin is aware and the coroner has been notified. The death is not being treated as suspicious."
Ambulance Service Confirms Response
A spokesperson for the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) said: "We were called at 14:17 hrs on Monday 22 June to an incident near Boscombe. We sent two double-crewed land ambulances, an air ambulance, a rapid response vehicle and an operations officer to the scene."
The woman's identity has not been released. The coroner will investigate the circumstances of the death, which is not being treated as suspicious.
