Most of the deaths were of people aged over 40 and more were men than women, 88 to 28. April was the month with the most cases recorded, at 16 drownings (13.7% of the annual total), followed by September and October, with 15 (12.8%) each.

The afternoon was the time of day with the most drownings recorded, at 42.7%, while Tuesday was the day when the most deaths occurred (18.8%).

In the high season - June to September - 45 deaths by drowning were recorded, a 11.8% drop from 2017.

Most of the deaths (71 cases) were not witnessed by anyone, and in only 27 cases was a rescue attempted.

The report was drawn up using statistical data obtained by the Observatory of Drowning, created by the Portuguese Federation of Lifeguards, in line with recommendations from the World Health Organisation and the International Life Saving Federation, which catalogues drowning as a public health problem.

The Portuguese federation is now launching the second phase of its ‘SOS Afogamento’ (SOS Drowning) prevention campaign for swimming schools - an initiative that releases safety advice quarterly based on statistics from the observatory.