Ameiya and Ricardo Del Brocco, known affectionately as Maya and Jubs, died after begging their parents for “one last swim” during the family holiday in Salou, Spain
A six-year-old boy told his aunt his brother has “went to heaven in a helicopter” after the sibling and his sister drowned during a family holiday in Spain.
During a conversation Casius Del Brocco had with his aunt Macalia, the little boy said: “Did you know Maya and Jubs are in heaven now? Juby went to heaven in a helicopter,” a reflection Macalia described as “bittersweet”. The poignant chat happened days after Ameiya and Ricardo Del Brocco – known affectionately as Maya and Jubs – died after getting into difficulty in the sea in Salou, Spain.
The tragedy, towards the end of the family’s “first big holiday abroad”, happened after Ameiya, 13, and 11-year-old Ricardo had begged their parents for “one last swim” but succumbed to the rough conditions. Their dad, Ricardo Snr, jumped in the water in a desperate bid to save his eldest children but neither he, or emergency services, could revive the youngsters.
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A team of psychologists has been sent to help the family, who are believed to to still be at their hotel near Llarga Beach. Macalia, 46, told reporters how the tragedies have affected each of the family members, including the four other siblings. The oldest of these is Casius, who spoke to his aunt in the wake of the deaths.
Speaking to Mail Online, the aunt said: “That’s his understanding of it, which is bittersweet, because that was what he saw. And it’s beautiful that he thinks that’s what happened, but very sadly tragic at the same time.
“Hotel staff have been coming in and collecting the children and taking them down to the club and discos keep them occupied and just keep it normal holiday for them. So it still feels holiday-esque for the little ones, even though we know that it’s not quite that.”
But the deaths have particularly hit 31-year-old Ricardo Snr hard, having witnessed the struggles. His sister-in-law continued: “Ricardo is feeling, obviously, very pained because he was in the water with them, so that’s going to be hitting him hard.
“That’s not going to disappear from his mind. It’s going to be a lot of trauma mentally for him to deal with. But families pull together, and there will be support all the way around.”
The family, of Birmingham, is now waiting for the bodies to be flown to the UK, which could take two weeks. A GoFundMe page has been created to help achieve this, and more than £18,000 has been raised so far.
Paying tribute to the siblings, Macalia described their inseparable bond and adoration for another. She said: “They would fight like cat and dog at times, but they adored each other.
“Maya was about to go into year nine. Very, very bright girl, even when we think she’s not doing her homework, she obviously is, because her report we got at the end of summer was amazing.
“She is very, very athletic. Very determined individual. When she wanted something she was adamant she was going to get it. She was very as a character, she was very sarcastic and humorous.”
To donate to the GoFundMe page, visit this link.