Brit, 34, Dies After Jumping From Boat During Zante Turtle Trip As Fiancée Reveals Friend’s Desperate Fight To Save Him
A British holidaymaker tragically died after jumping into the sea during a turtle-spotting trip in Zante, leaving his fiancée devastated and his close friend haunted by the desperate attempt to save him.
Cameron William Wallace, 34, from Exeter, had travelled to the Greek island with his friend Steve Pittman for a break.
But what was meant to be a relaxing getaway ended in tragedy when Cameron jumped into the water near the small island of Marathonisi at around 3pm on Tuesday.
Cameron had been on a rented boat with Steve when he entered the sea.
Just minutes later, a man aboard another vessel spotted him lying face-down in the water.
He shouted towards Steve: “Is your friend OK?”
Steve immediately raised the alarm.
The devastated friend and others pulled Cameron from the water and began performing emergency CPR while desperately waiting for help.
According to a source, Cameron was initially breathing but stopped responding several minutes later.
A Coast Guard patrol boat eventually arrived and transported him towards an ambulance, which rushed him to Zakynthos General Hospital.
Tragically, Cameron was pronounced dead shortly after arriving.
‘IT REALLY HASN’T SUNK IN YET’
Cameron’s death has left his fiancée Silvana Bernardes, 34, struggling to comprehend what happened.
The couple had been together for 11 years and had only recently become engaged.
They had already started making plans for their wedding.
Silvana told The Sun: “It’s all come as a huge shock. It really hasn’t sunk in yet.”
She said Cameron had only arrived in Zante on Monday and had been excited about the trip.
But by Wednesday morning, she received the devastating phone call that changed everything.
Silvana recalled Steve calling her and saying:
“I’m really sorry, I don’t know how to say this but something really bad has happened, Cameron’s died.”
She said she initially struggled to believe the news.
HIS FRIEND ‘TRIED EVERYTHING’
Steve has reportedly been left struggling with guilt following Cameron’s sudden death.
But Silvana insists he should not blame himself.
“There’s nothing he could have done,” she said.
“Everyone tried their best to help him but it’s just one of those situations.”
The exact cause of Cameron’s death has not yet been established.
A forensic examination is ongoing, with Silvana saying the family does not yet know whether he suffered a medical emergency such as a heart attack or whether his death was connected to water entering his lungs.
THE TRIP WAS SUPPOSED TO BE AN ESCAPE
Cameron had recently lost his job after spending around 10 years running his own electrical engineering business.
The holiday with Steve was intended to give him a chance to step away from those worries and enjoy some time away.
Silvana said:
“He just needed something to take his mind off all this and unfortunately it didn’t end as we wanted.”
Instead, she is now facing the devastating loss of the man she had spent more than a decade with.
The couple had lived together throughout their relationship and had only just begun planning their life as husband and wife.
Cameron was due to return home this weekend.
Instead, his loved ones are now making arrangements to bring him home.
A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help Cameron’s family with the costs of bringing him back to Britain and arranging his funeral.
A Foreign Office spokesperson confirmed that officials are supporting the family and are in contact with local authorities in Greece.
What began as a long-awaited holiday filled with hopes of a fresh start has ended in an unimaginable tragedy — leaving Cameron’s fiancée, family and friends waiting for answers about the final moments of his life.