British man dies after two yachts collide at Cannes

Seventeen passengers evacuated safely without injury

Yachts in the port of Cannes at the start of the film festival (Reuters)

A British man has died in a collision between two yachts near the French city of Cannes.

The 29-year-old was injured when the 27m-long Vision hit the 26.5m-long Minx at around 9pm on Saturday.

He suffered a cardiac arrest and died despite the efforts of medical staff onboard a rescue boat called to the scene.

Seventeen other passengers were evacuated to a nearby port “safe and sound”, albeit shocked, according to a statement from the Maritime Prefecture of the Mediterranean.

The British man was a crew member on board the Minx, which was anchored north of the island of St Marguerite at the time of the collision.

Both boats were towed to Port Pierre-Canto in Cannes and an investigation was launched by the maritime office of Marseilles.

The collision took place on the last day of the Cannes Film Festival.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “Our staff are assisting the family of a British man following his death in France, and are in contact with the local authorities.”