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The Royal Bahamas Police Force said Leanne Gregory was snorkelling with her husband Nathan Gregory and their two sons near the southern point of Bimini when a strong current pulled the boys away prompting her to enter the water in an attempt to reach them. She was subsequently swept away herself and recovered unresponsive at the North Bimini Ferry Dock where her husband and bystanders administered CPR. The children were pulled to safety by a local water taxi crew but Gregory was transported to a clinic and pronounced dead by a doctor despite resuscitation efforts. Authorities have ruled out foul play and an autopsy is scheduled to establish the exact cause.
Water taxi captain Linty Stuart who was operating the vessel that assisted the family told Bahamian broadcaster ZNS that his crew noticed frantic hands waving from a distance and moved to investigate amid difficult conditions. Stuart described waves of seven to eight feet that nearly capsized his boat as rescuers prioritised the children before turning to Gregory. “Everything happened really really fast. It’s a shock” Stuart said. The incident took place as the Bahamas Department of Meteorology had warned of near-gale conditions and hazardous marine environments across the Northern Bahamas that day.
Witnesses at the scene described Gregory as a hero for her immediate actions to protect her children. Katie Resciniti who said she observed the entire event posted on social media “I was there for all of it. She’s a hero. It was truly terrible and nobody’s fault. Just two boys who were eager to get in the water and then things went crazy fast. Two of the best parents I’ve ever seen in my entire life.” The family from Stapleford in Nottinghamshire had been on a half-term holiday that included a cruise stop at the popular tourist island. Nathan Gregory’s mother Kim Jones told The Telegraph the loss was devastating as her daughter-in-law drowned trying to save her two boys who got into trouble in choppy waters.
The Royal Bahamas Police Force detailed in its statement that officers at Alice Town police station were notified shortly after 10am that a female was unresponsive at the ferry dock. Preliminary information indicated the group had been snorkelling when the current affected the sons leading to the chain of events. The force added that Gregory was later rescued transported for medical attention and declared deceased after all revival attempts failed. The UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office stated it was in contact with local authorities and providing support to the family saying its thoughts were with the relatives of the British woman who died in the Bahamas.
The tragedy has highlighted ongoing risks associated with marine conditions in Bimini where the Bahamas Department of Meteorology issued a near-gale watch for the northern and northwest Bahamas alongside a high risk of dangerous life-threatening rip currents across all Atlantic waters of the island chain. According to a report by IBTimes UK drawing on local accounts Bimini waters have been linked to earlier snorkelling deaths including three separate drownings in one week during February 2025 and the death of a 69-year-old American tourist in May 2026. Official marine safety guidance for the Bahamas advises beachgoers particularly in the northern islands to refrain from entering the waters when such warnings are active and stresses that rip currents can pull swimmers away from shore rapidly even if they are strong.
Linty Stuart owner of L&A Water Taxi told local media the strong currents and large waves complicated the rescue with one wave estimated at seven to eight feet high nearly overturning the vessel during the operation. A separate account from a witness who assisted at the ferry dock noted that both children were rescued and that the father had attempted to save one of the boys before bystanders intervened. The combined reports from police statements and eyewitness interviews underline how quickly the situation escalated on what began as a routine family outing during the half-term period.
