British woman is hit by a speedboat propellor and killed while swimming by the beach in Corfu 

A British woman was killed after being hit by a boat propeller off the coast of a Greek holiday island today. 

The 60-year-old woman was hit by a speedboat while swimming off Corfu and her body was discovered by other bathers, local media says. 

Swimmers said the woman had suffered ‘serious injuries to the lower extremities’ in the fatal accident off Avlaki beach.    

The person steering the speedboat did not notice the woman in time and could not swerve out of the way to avoid hitting her, it is believed.   

The 60-year-old British woman was swimming off the coast of Corfu when a speedboat captain allegedly failed to spot her in time 

There were thought to be numerous speedboats in the area and the local port authority is investigating the woman’s death. 

The woman’s body was taken to Corfu General Hospital and an autopsy is expected tomorrow, according to I Efimerida. 

The British expat’s name has not been revealed and it is not clear whether she was swimming alone or with others.  

She was described as a permanent resident of Corfu, but UK tourists have also been returning to Greece in recent weeks after travel restrictions were lifted. 

Greece is one of the ‘travel corridor’ countries where tourists can go without having to quarantine for two weeks when they return to Britain. 

However, an increase in coronavirus cases in recent weeks has pushed it closer to the threshold of 20 cases per 100,000 in a week at which the UK is likely to re-impose quarantine rules. 

The current figure is 14.1, after nearly 1,500 new cases were reported in the last seven days.