2 woman’s has died a mile off the coast of France after almost completing an attempt to swim across the Channel to raise money for charity.
Susan Taylor, a 34-year-old accountant from Barwell, Leicestershire, became ill on Sunday afternoon when she was only a mile away from finishing the charity swim. She was airlifted by a French navy helicopter to a hospital in Boulogne but was declared dead at around 7pm.
By Monday evening, Taylor’s fundraising webpage, where she was collecting money for Rainbows children’s hospice in Loughborough and Diabetes UK, had raised more than £41,500. Comedian David Walliams, who swam the Channel himself for charity, was the biggest donor.
Many givers left messages of condolence on the website. “Deepest sympathies to all of Susan’s family and friends. What a brave woman taking on such an incredible challenge and for such a good cause,” wrote Kate from Leicester.
“I am glad something good has come out of this tragic death,” added Steffan Merrick.
Taylor set off from the UK in the early hours of Sunday for the swim. She was swimming alongside a support boat but as she entered Wissant bay, near Cap Gris Nez, she got into “serious difficulty”, a French police source said.
Taylor’s support crew radioed for a defibrillator at about 5pm, and the French navy evacuated her to hospital. “She was swimming from Britain, and was well supported,” a police source said.
The cause of Taylor’s death is not yet known but she was swimming on one of the hottest days of the year, with water temperatures of around 15C.
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