Tourists flock to this Puerto Rico beach, unaware that it lacks many critical emergency services

Puerto Rico's Flamenco Beach — a remote, pristine crescent of sand along a dazzling stretch of Caribbean blue water — is considered among the world's best. It's on the island of Culebra, where 1,800 people live year-round — just a fraction of the number of tourists that visit the island's less than 12 square miles every day.

But locals are aware of the beautiful beach's biggest risk: If your life is in danger, medical help is not around. Until recently, the beach did not have a lifeguard to watch over its waters.

Rip currents play a large role in Puerto Rico's average 30 drowning deaths each year. There have been 18 known recorded drowning deaths on the island of Culebra since 1994 and three known recorded drowning deaths off Flamenco Beach since December 2021.

Manny Ma was visiting from Boise, Idaho — one of the half-million or more tourists attorney Julian Rivera Aspinall estimates visit each year — when he drowned while snorkeling last December. His family's attorney said Ma's wife found him floating in the ocean.