A visitor from Deer Park, New York, who lost his life during rough seas at Horseshoe Bay Beach “tragically passed away saving a ten-year-old child from drowning”, according to his loved ones.

The family of 48-year-old Jamie Lambros, who were holidaying on a cruise ship, wrote: “In his final moments, Jamie showed the courage and selflessness that those who knew him will always remember. He died a hero, giving his life so another could live.”

The circumstances of the tragedy on Monday afternoon mirrored those of Hyon Duk Shin, a tourist from Pennsylvania, who died after swimming to the aid of a young child struggling in high waves in March.

Mr Lambros’s family, who are raising funds to meet the costs of returning his body to the US for burial, wrote: “Jamie was so much more than a son, brother, uncle, cousin, godfather and friend — he was the life of every party, someone whose laughter filled any room, and whose heart was as big as his spirit.

“His loss leaves an unimaginable void in all our lives.”

Mark Pettingill, the former MP, a one-time lifeguard and regular at the beach, arrived shortly after Mr Lambros was brought ashore.

He suggested changes to the island’s lifeguard policy — including the use of jet skis at the popular beach, which is subject to undertow.

A relative of Mr Lambros told The Royal Gazette: “My family were in the water when they noticed a child in distress.

“They quickly reacted and went over to help the couple and their child. They were able to get the child and parents to safety but then they quickly got into trouble.

“The child’s parents repeatedly stated to my aunt that my cousin saved their child’s life.”

Rough seas generated by swells from the distant Hurricane Kirk hit the island at the weekend.

The Department of Parks said on Monday that “high surf” notices had been posted at South Shore beaches and public parks but that no lifeguards would be on duty this week at Horseshoe Bay.

On Tuesday, the department cited continuing problems with recruitment, stating there had been “marginal success” in filling posts for the seasonal job and that “we are likely to continue to face such challenges in the future”.

Mr Lambros and his cousin went to the aid of “a couple and their young child struggling in the water”, his cousin wrote. They got them to safety.

He said the two reacted without realising conditions were worsening and “as the water got more intense, others in the water also started to struggle”.

While helping others to safety, he lost track of his cousin and got into difficulty himself.

“I consider myself a strong swimmer but even I was struggling in the water trying to stay afloat.

“It was to the point where I was screaming for help as I felt I wasn’t going to be able to stay above the water much longer.

“I have never felt so helpless and desperate for my life before this happened.”

He said that after he was pulled to safety, “I finally saw them bringing someone in and realised it was him”.

“I had to ride with him to the hospital as I was suffering from ingesting saltwater and exhaustion from the swimming.

“Eventually, it was determined that they were unable to revive Jamie and we lost him.”

The victim’s brother, Joey Pappas, posted online that the family were trying to have his body released by the hospital and brought home.

The family’s GoFundMe page said costs entailed in “the process to get Jamie home” had raised their fundraising goal to $25,000.

Mr Pettingill, who said he ran on the beach most days, arrived just after Mr Lambros was brought on a surfboard to shore, where medics attempted to revive him.

He later offered his legal services to the distressed family free of charge.

In between assisting the victim’s relatives, Mr Pettingill said that a ten-year-old boy had got into trouble, with several people going to the rescue.

He said: “I have been a lifeguard, so I’m always watching for kids when it’s rough. I have been struck in the past by the fact that we can have cruise ships in and a thousand people on the beach, and there are no lifeguards.”

Mr Pettingill said there were no warnings posted at the beach on Sunday, when conditions were worse. He added there seemed to be “no rhyme or reason” to the placing of lifeguards. He called the schedule “inconsistent”.

“It’s a national treasure but we can’t have people dying there or getting into trouble when they could be saved.”

Mr Pettingill said there appeared to be a death a year at the beach, frequently involving tourists.

He added: “It’s just far too many for a beach that we regularly put out as one of the top in the world.

“What is needed down there, on that beach particularly, to secure the safety of people visiting, is a proper life-saving, jet-ski service like you see in Australia, California or Florida to quickly access the water and rescue somebody far better than a person swimming.

“It is very common for people to go in to save someone and have the rescuer succumb. This is not the first time — this happened in March.”

• UPDATE: this article has been amended to clarify that Jamie Lambros was from Deer Park, New York