British man, 57, drowns after going swimming during tropical storm while visiting his girlfriend in the Philippines

  • David Wilmot, 57, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, arrived on holiday on July 2 
  • He went swimming at a beach resort in Maramba, Albay during Storm Falcon 
  • Locals pulled him to shore and he was rushed and he was pronounced dead after

By Bridie Pearson-jones For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

A British tourist drowned after going swimming in the Philippines while the country was being battered by a tropical storm.

David Wilmot, 57, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, arrived on holiday on July 2 to visit his girlfriend, a Filipino national. 

He went swimming at a beach resort in Maramba, Albay, on the western coast of the city on Thursday while the country was in the grips of Storm Falcon.

David Wilmot, 57, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, arrived on holiday on July 2 to visit his girlfriend, a Filipino national

David Wilmot, 57, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, arrived on holiday on July 2 to visit his girlfriend, a Filipino national

Tragically, he was dragged away by powerful currents during the evening swim at around 6pm, while his partner Joan, stayed in the hotel room.

Locals pulled him to shore and he was rushed to the Wilmot to Pantao Hospital in the nearby town but he was pronounced dead shortly after.

Police Staff Sergeant PSSg Romy Regalario, chief investigator of the case, David arrived in the country on July 2 and was due to leave today.

He said: 'David Wilmot had been coming to the Philippines at least once a year since 2011. He had been coming here for vacations.'

David had been visiting and staying at the house of a Filipino woman named Joan Omaga from Albay province, who told immigration was his 'best friend.'

The pair were also listed on social media as being in a relationship together and David had posted that he 'loved her very much'.

He went swimming at a beach resort in Maramba, Albay, on the western coast of the city on Thursday while the country was in the grips of Storm Falcon
Tragically, he was dragged away by powerful currents during the evening swim at around 6pm, while his partner Joan, stayed in the hotel room.

He went swimming at a beach resort in Maramba, Albay, on the western coast of the city on Thursday while the country was in the grips of Storm Falcon. Tragically, he was dragged away by powerful currents during the evening swim at around 6pm, while his partner Joan, stayed in the hotel room.

Locals pulled him to shore and he was rushed to the Wilmot to Pantao Hospital in the nearby town but he was pronounced dead shortly after

Locals pulled him to shore and he was rushed to the Wilmot to Pantao Hospital in the nearby town but he was pronounced dead shortly after

Police Staff Sergeant Regalario added: 'The morgue is now in communication with the British consul for the process of returning his remains to England and informing the families.

'Officers are looking into what caused the tourist to drown but we do not believe it is suspicious.'

Storm Falcon had brought heavy wind, rain and flooding in the Philippines last week.

In Albay province, the country's Office of Civil Defense (OCD) suspended school classes last Wednesday after moderate to heavy rains brought by Tropical Storm Falcon threatened to bring floods and landslides.

Most watched News videos

Comments 3

Share what you think

The comments below have been moderated in advance.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.