This past Monday, a retired woman from Montreal and her two-year old grandniece tragically drowned in Playa Santa Teresa, located on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. According to the Toronto Sun, Andree Hamel rushed into the surf to save little Jasmine, who was born in Costa Rica; alas, both were caught in the strong undertow produced by dangerous rip current conditions. Advisories had been in effect for the entire Pacific coast since last weekend.

In November 2014, The Costa Rica Star reported on the efforts by lifeguards in Tamarindo Beach to save a group of Canadian tourists from being pulled by seaward undertow. Sadly, 72-year old Dennis Dacuik could not be saved.

Prior to the report above, the body of Marceau Gaitan, a 57-year old French Canadian who arrived in Costa Rica along with relatives and friends to enjoy the pristine beaches of Guanacaste , was identified by agents from the Organization of Judicial Investigations (Spanish initials: OIJ) in Playa Hermosa. Even earlier in 2014, OIJ agents also identified the body of a Canadian woman at a different Playa Hermosa, this one near Jaco Beach in Puntarenas.

The cause of death for all these Canadians visiting Costa Rica: Drowning.

Kurt Chase, a 38-year old Canadian man visiting Playa Jaco during the busy Holy Week in 2013, disappeared while swimming in the rough surf conditions at Jaco Beach. Despite search and rescue efforts by lifeguards, the Red Cross and the National Coast Guard Service of Costa Rica, the late Chase was not found until eight days later when a Red Cross rescuer on duty spotted his lifeless body floating about 300 meters from the shore, nearly in front of the Tourism Police Station in that expat beach community.

In April 2013, a 42-year old Canadian vacationing in Playa Negra of Puerto Viejo in the Caribbean province of Limon drowned shortly after finishing breakfast at the Banana Azul Hotel. The swimming spot that took his life is located not far from the hotel Serge Seguin stayed in; according to a report from Diario Extra, the late Seguin was from Rouyn-Noranda.

Yet another Canadian drowned in September 2013. As reported by the Costa Rica Star:

The treacherous underwater currents of Drake Bay claimed the life of a Canadian man who was reportedly part of a film crew working for the international cable network NatGeo in Costa Rica. The photographer has been identified as Peter Brumer.

With the exception of the underwater photographer’s tragic diving accident, all the other Canadians drowned in the surf while on vacation. They are hardly the only nationality represented in the long tally of drowning deaths in Costa Rica; when it comes to claiming someone’s life, the ocean does not discriminate: North Americans, Europeans, South Americans, Ticos… It doesn’t matter.

The Costa Rica Star often reports on drowning deaths that sadly occur on this country’s many beaches. The only common denominator in these drownings is that locals are virtually absent from the casualty lists. In the case of Marceau Gaitan, Diario Extra explained that residents of Playa Hermosa in Guanacaste know better than to push their luck in the surf after 4:00 pm from about February to April; even surfers sit out the rough sloppiness of the sets before sunset. In the end, Canadians and all visitors to Costa Rica’s beaches should always exercise caution when entering the unpredictable surf.