An English woman died during a charity swim across the English Channel Sunday, after she "collapsed suddenly" in the water.
On her fundraising Facebook page, Susan Taylor's sister posted that toward the tail end of a 21-mile trek from England to France, the 34-year-old woman from Barwell, Leicestershire, died in Boulogne.
"Whilst attempting to swim the English Channel yesterday, my sister, Susan, collapsed suddenly in the water," the Create a Ripple Channel Swim- Susan Taylor page read on Monday. "She was immediately recovered from the water and treated on the support boat. She was then air lifted by helicopter to a hospital in Boulogne. Susan tragically passed away."
Reports have not yet detailed what caused her death specifically. Photos on the Facebook page depict calm waters just minutes before the swim started.
"Please respect the families' privacy whilst they come to terms with what has happened," the Facebook post concluded.
According to CNN, Taylor decided to participate in the swim to help raise funds for Rainbows Hospice and Diabetes UK. By Monday at noon, Taylor had managed to raise around $27,000, (18,000 pounds."
Following her untimely death, The Channel Swimming Association-an organization that oversees such channel crossings-released a statement that grieved the "tragic loss under valiant circumstances."
"We extend our sympathy and thoughts to her family and friends at this very sad time," they posted on their website. "We have been asked by the family not to comment further. We will respect their wishes."
Taylor's father Arthur Wright told the BBC that he no longer had "the best person in the whole world."
"She was just wonderful," he said.
According to the secretary of the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation Kevin Murphy, channel swimming-related deaths are rarely seen.
"We know it's an extreme sport, but...in nearly 150 years, there have been only half a dozen fatalities," he stated to the BBC.
