One Portuguese national has died and two others remain missing after their inflatable boat was struck by a storm off the coast of Croatia in the early hours of Wednesday, with one woman rescued alive.
The alarm was raised at 04:41, prompting a major search-and-rescue operation involving a Coast Guard Pilatus PC-9 aircraft in the Velebit Channel. Search efforts have been hampered by winds of roughly 110 km/h and three-metre waves. The group of four friends had been camping in the north and were travelling in a small inflatable dinghy toward the town of Senj when the vessel capsized during the storm.
Portugal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it is monitoring the situation in close coordination with Croatian authorities. Prime Minister Luís Montenegro confirmed that one fatality has been identified. The ministry earlier posted — then deleted — a social media update stating that the boat had been located and one victim recovered.