A British man and his five-year-old son were swept to their deaths off Spain’s Mediterranean coast today after the father dived into stormy seas to rescue his two children, local authorities said.

The 32-year-old man, his wife and their two sons had been taking photographs on rocks close to the Costa Brava town of Tossa de Mar when the boys were knocked into the sea by a sudden wave, according to a statement from town hall officials. The father managed to pull the older child, aged nine, from the water before leaping back in for a second, ill-fated attempt.

Dragged out to sea by powerful currents, the pair were spotted clinging to a buoy around 20 metres offshore but rescuers were unable to reach them before they drowned, Spain’s national news agency reported.

It is thought that the storms that have been battering the south of Spain for several days and which yesterday descended on the country’s north-eastern coast had left the seas too rough for a helicopter rescue, while the Zodiac launches normally used in such situations were also unable to cope. By the time a bigger rescue vessel had been secured, the two Britons had died.

Air sea rescue services in Barcelona reported that gale force winds blowing from the south-east had created dangerous undercurrents and waves at least 2-3m (6-10ft) high.

The bodies were eventually retrieved some 600 metres away from where the wave struck.

The victims have been identified only by their initials, S.H. for the father and J.H. for the son. The surviving son was taken to a local hospital with hypothermia while the mother, who watched the tragedy unfold from just a few feet away, was treated for shock. Both have since been released from hospital.

The popular Costa Brava resort where the family had been holidaying lies some 60 miles north of Barcelona, and can suffer severe weather at certain times of year. Along with Lloret de Mar, Tossa de Mar was at the centre of the original package holiday boom in the 1970s and still attract thousands of British tourists each year.

British travel company sun4U confirmed that the tragedy had involved clients staying at an affiliated hotel in Tossa de Mar, but could not offer any further details until released by police.

"There has been a serious incident involving clients of our company on holiday in Spain,” said Tina Patel, managing director. “Our regional manager based in Spain is travelling to the resort in question to offer any assistance we can give."

The episode is reminiscent of the deaths of three British tourists in the seas off Portugal’s Algarve last month. Rob and Deborah Fry and their friend Jean Dismore had been trying to save their struggling children when they drowned off Tonel Beach near Sagres, notorious for its treacherous rip-currents.

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