A BRITISH woman and an Australian man who died after they fell 100ft off a beach wall while taking selfies in Portugal have been named as Louise Benson and her partner Michael Kearns. 
 
 The pair, who lived in Perth, were taking pictures from a street overlooking the beach when they lost their balance and fell, local media reported. 
 
 Facebook 8 British woman Louise Benson, above, died after plunging from a beach wall with her partner Michael Kearns 
 
 The incident reportedly happened early Tuesday morning at Pescadores beach in the coastal town of Ericeira, a popular surfing spot about 30 kilometres from Lisbon. 
 
 The bodies of Ms Benson, 37, and Mr Kearns, 33, were found in the sand by a beach cleaner, according to local media. 
 
 The couple had been travelling on a five-month holiday before the accident, according to 9News. 
 
 Ms Benson, believed to have been originally from Bristol, posted a photo to social media just a day before their deaths showing Fisherman's Point in the background – the cliff from which the couple fell. 
 
 Facebook 8 Michael Kearns, above in the photo posted by partner Louise, was originally from Perth, Australia, where the couple lived together 
 
 Facebook 8 Michael Kearns shared a photo of a glass of red wine on the beach with the exact 30-metre wall the couple would fall from just a day before their deaths 
 
 Paying tribute to Louise Benson online, one friend said: "It's can be such a cruel world we live in... Yet again another great soul took away from us far too early," another said. 
 
 "RIP Michael Kearns, I can’t believe this has happened to such a great guy. Life is so short," one friend said. 
 
 Mr Kearns worked on Chevron’s Wheatstone project in Western Australia and was a keen recreational diver in his spare time, according to PerthNow. 
 
 His mother said yesterday the couple had left Australia in January on a holiday and had attended a friend’s wedding in Portugal in recent weeks. 
 
 8 Cops have sealed off the beach at Pescadores beach in the coastal town of Ericeira 
 
 The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) told news.com.au it was in contact with British authorities regarding the other person who died. 
 
 DFAT said it was providing support for the victims' families. 
 
 “The Department has been in contact with the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office regarding the other person who died in the incident,” a DFAT spokeswoman said. 
 
 A spokesperson for the Foreign Office told The Sun Online: "We are in touch with local authorities following the death of a British woman in Portugal and are providing support to her family." 
 
 8 The location of the horror incident 
 
 Rui Pereira da Terra, the head of the rescue service in Cascais port, near Lisbon, said it appeared the couple was taking a selfie when the tragedy happened. 
 
 Emergency workers found a mobile phone on the wall where they were understood to have lost their balance. 
 
 “Everything seems to indicate that the fall happened when they were probably trying to take a selfie. 
 
 "It seems they dropped their mobile phone and fell down while leaning over to retrieve it," he told AFP. 
 
 8 The pair plunged 100ft from the beach wall,it has been reported 
 
 8 Emergency workers found a mobile phone on the wall where they were understood to have lost their balance 
 
 Getty - Contributor 8 The fishing town of Ericeira is a popular spot for surfers and holidaymakers, and is renowned for its seafood restaurants and nightlife 
 
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 AFP reported this was not the first time tourists have fallen from the wall near the beach, known as Praia dos Pescadores or Fishermans Beach, a popular spot surrounded by cliffs and a 30-metre high wall. 
 
 The fishing town of Ericeira is a popular spot for surfers and holidaymakers, and is renowned for its seafood restaurants and nightlife. 
 
 A version of this story originally appeared on news.com.au 
 
 We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368. You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours. ||||| The devastated mother of a Perth man who fell 30m to his death from a cliff will travel to Portugal to make arrangements to bring home her son’s body. 
 
 Michael Kearns, 33, and his British partner Louise Benson, 37, are believed to have died early on Tuesday local time after the fall in the popular tourist town of Ericeira, about 35 kilometres north of Lisbon. 
 
 Local media reported a beach cleaner found the couple at the bottom of the high embankment and that a mobile phone found nearby indicated they might have been taking photographs before they fell. 
 
 Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manhã reported authorities were investigating whether a “selfie” might have been the cause of the accident. 
 
 Corfina Media reported police will speak to witnesses who said they saw the pair sitting on the wall with their legs facing the beach. 
 
 “Everything seems to indicate that the fall happened when they were probably trying to take a selfie,” Captain Rui Pereira da Terra of the nearby Cascais Port rescue service said. 
 
 “It seems they dropped their mobile phone and fell down while leaning over to retrieve it.” 
 
 The couple’s bodies were taken to a medical centre while authorities contacted the Australian and British embassies in Lisbon. 
 
 Mr Kearns was a fly-in, fly-out worker on Chevron’s Wheatstone project in the Pilbara and was a keen recreational diver in his spare time. 
 
 His mother said yesterday the couple had left Australia in January on a holiday and had attended a friend’s wedding in Portugal in recent weeks. 
 
 Mr Kearns’ parents were notified of their son’s death about 1am and were later visited by WA Police. 
 
 A DFAT spokesperson confirmed it was providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian who died in Portugal. 
 
 “The Department has been in contact with the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office regarding the other person who died in the incident,” the spokesperson said. 
 
 “Owing to our privacy obligations we will not provide further comment.” 
 
 Ericeira is a coastal town regarded as Portugal’s surfing Mecca. Its beach is a popular photo spot for tourists thanks to its cliffs and high walls. ||||| Get Daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe See our privacy notice Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email 
 
 Tributes have been paid to a Bristol woman who died after she and her boyfriend fell from a cliff in Portugal. 
 
 Louise Benson, 37, from the city, and her Australian boyfriend, Michael Kearns, 33, have been identified as the two victims. 
 
 It is believed the incident happened after the couple tried to take a 'selfie' from a 30m-tall beach wall. 
 
 Friend, John Keogh, paid tribute to Louise, who was a keen diver, on Facbook. 
 
 (Image: Daily Mirror) 
 
 "It can be such a cruel world we live in. RIP Louise Benson yet again another great soul took away (sic) from us far too early. My condolences to all the family and loved ones." 
 
 Liz Catchpole wrote, "No words can describe what we have lost. Louise Benson you had a passion for life. I will never forget you rocking up to The Adventure Club to do your DMT.. A quiet, not for long tho, Bristol girl who just loved life. Your smile infectious, your laugh amazing, your friendship invaluable ... in shock and speechless, you will be missed and I will miss you so much." 
 
 Louise and Michael were found by council cleaners at Pescadores (Fisherman's) Beach in Ericeira, as reported in The Mirror. 
 
 The captain of the port of Cascais, 30km west of Lisbon, told Corfina Media he believed the woman may have been trying to take photos when the incident occurred. 
 
 "We found a mobile phone [at the bottom of] on the sea wall which indicated they might have been taking a selfie when the phone fell - they leaned over to get it and fell," he said. 
 
 Australian news site PerthNow is reporting the devastated mother of Mr Kearns will travel to Portugal to make arrangements to bring her son's body home. 
 
 She said yesterday the couple had left Australia in January on a holiday and had attended a friend’s wedding in Portugal in recent weeks. 
 
 Local news site JN said both were found with serious injuries.
– A fisherman returning to a Portuguese beach encountered a "scene of horror" early Tuesday: the "unrecognizable" bodies of a tourist couple who appear to have fallen 100 feet to their deaths while trying to take a selfie. Brit Louise Benson, 37, and her Aussie boyfriend, 33-year-old Michael Kearns, were found at Fisherman's Beach in Ericeira at the bottom of a 100-foot wall, on top of which sat a phone, report the Bristol Post and Independent. "Everything seems to indicate that the fall happened when they were probably trying to take a selfie," PerthNow quotes an official as saying. "It seems they dropped their mobile phone and fell down while leaning over to retrieve it." Local media report witnesses saw the couple, who'd been staying at a local hotel, crossing a safety barrier and sitting on the wall with their legs facing the sea before they toppled from view, per the Independent and PerthNow. A day earlier, Benson and Kearns had shared photos on social media showing them enjoying Fisherman's Beach, with the point from which they would fall visible in the background, per the Sun. They'd departed their home in Australia in January on a lengthy holiday and had recently attended a friend's wedding in Portugal, Kearns' mother tells PerthNow. Portugal's foreign affairs department says it's in contact with the British government and is assisting Kearns' family. (This selfie managed to ID a killer.)