The Costa Rican Red Cross found the body of 18-year-old Felipe Castro Espinoza, a nephew of current Environment Minister René Castro, Friday, the day after he was caught in a wave at a beach in Santa Teresa, on the Nicoya Peninsula, La Nación reports.
The younger Castro disappeared at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday after he and six relatives were caught in a riptide wave. Rescuers pulled out six of the beach-goers from the ocean, and transported them to a hospital. Castro’s body was found 6:12 a.m. on the beach’s shore.
René Castro confirmed the incident Thursday to La Nación.
“It was my nephew who didn’t reappear,” Castro said. “He was together with his other brothers and cousins.”
The Red Cross also recovered the body of 40-year-old Rafael Ángel Solano Carranza, who disappeared from another Nicoya Peninsula beach, Punta Morales.
Riptides are a recurrent cause of misfortune on Costa Rica’s beaches. Earlier in the week, oceanographers at the National University broadcast a riptide report for the Easter Holy Week and asked travelers to take extreme caution during this week’s vacations.
