The family of a British man who died while trying to save a dog from drowning in a river near Benidorm, is desperately trying to raise cash to bring his body back to the UK. Paul Lebihan, 25, who had been living near the Costa Blanca resort with his fiancée for around a year, was swept under water after rescuing the distressed animal.
His heartbroken family said they “can’t put into words” their devastation after “selfless” Paul's death and they are trying to bring his body back home. His cousin, Kallym Bell, 19 said former navy man had originally gone out to Spain for a holiday, but after meeting a girl, he had stayed and later made plans to marry her.
He said he’d received the heart-breaking news of Paul’s passing on Monday, from a family member, adding that it was typical of him to “put himself before others”. He is now helping Paul’s grief-stricken parents, Deborah and Paul Snr, raise the £15,000 needed to transport their only son’s body back to the UK.
Kallym from Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, explained the circumstances surrounding Paul’s death were still a little hazy. He said: “It’s not clear if it was his dog or a dog – but there was a dog drowning under the current.
“He jumped in and saved the dog, but he got pulled under himself and ended up drowning. For his parents, it’s just unspeakable how much you’ve got to go through to lose your son at 25, when it’s your only son as well.”
Former Royal Navy sailor Paul was a keen boxer, and Kallym said former pals are now in a state of "shock" at the loss of the well-loved young man at such a young age. A donation page hopes to raise £15,000 so that his parents can bring Paul's body back to Gateshead.
It has already raised almost half that amount in 24 hours. Kallym said: “There are additional costs of getting his body back into the UK, and for the funeral itself. There was no life insurance in place, and transporting the body back to England is very, very expensive.
“I didn’t want a burden on his mum, having to fork out thousands and thousands of pounds while grieving already for the death of her young son. But we’ve raised £7,000 in under 24 hours, which shows you how loved he was and how popular he was that everywhere you go, people knew him and loved him.”
To donate visit the gofundme page here
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