Three members of the same family have died and a younger girl remains in critical condition after four relatives got into difficulty in the sea at Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex.
Witnesses have claimed the emergency may have begun after one of the children became caught in a fishing net while swimming. However, police have not confirmed that account, and an investigation is now underway to establish exactly what happened.
Four members of one family got into difficulty
Fishermen reported seeing four people struggling in the water at around 3pm while conditions at sea were choppy.
Emergency services responded in large numbers, with ambulances, two air ambulances and Coastguard teams sent to the scene. A fisherman is understood to have helped pull one of the children from the water before the alarm was raised.
Despite efforts by paramedics, a man, a woman and a teenage girl were pronounced dead.
A younger girl was taken to hospital, where she remains in critical condition.
Sussex Police later confirmed that all four people involved were members of the same family and that their next of kin had been informed.
Specialist officers are supporting relatives following the tragedy.
Witness claims girl became caught in fishing net
While the exact circumstances remain under investigation, witnesses have described what they were told happened before the family got into difficulty.
Joe Chrisp, 24, said a local fisherman had told him that two adults and two children were involved. He also said he had been told that one of the children had become caught in a fishing net.
That account has not been confirmed by police.
Sussex Police said its current understanding is that all four family members entered the water from the shore intending to swim before getting into difficulty.
An investigation has been launched to determine the full circumstances.
Family had reportedly been camping nearby
Local residents said the family had been staying in tents near the harbour front in the weeks before the incident.
One resident, who asked not to be identified, said they had heard from friends in the Coastguard that the family had been camping between the harbour arm and the fort.
The resident said they had previously seen the tents while walking their dog and believed the family had been staying there for a couple of weeks.
It is also understood that some of the family’s relatives live abroad.
The identities of the three people who died have not yet been released.
Major emergency response at Shoreham
Images from the scene showed a substantial emergency operation along the shoreline, with eight ambulances and helicopters among the resources deployed.
Emergency crews remained in the area for several hours. A police cordon was eventually removed shortly before 9pm.
Nearby roads were also affected during the response. The A259 Brighton Road, which runs alongside the beach, was closed in both directions between New Road and Kingston Lane.
Chief Superintendent James Collis later confirmed that the Coastguard was not searching for anyone else.
Police said their thoughts were with the family’s relatives and friends as specialist officers continue to support them.
The investigation into how the four family members came to be in difficulty in the water remains ongoing.
Joss Loader, who lives nearby and represents Shoreham Beach Residents’ Association on Adur District Council, said: ‘There’s just a really strong sense of shock, obviously people are really concerned for the young girl.
‘A small tightly knight community with a very deep sense of shock and that sense of disbelief you get after a tragedy because it has come out of nowhere.
‘It’s school holidays and we have had a wonderful summer so the beaches have been packed with families.
‘People swim from those beaches even in the winter, generally it is considered as safe as the sea can be. You wouldn’t be swimming there and think you were taking a risk.’
Anna Peacock, 81, who lives near Kingston Beach across the water from Shoreham Fort, said emergency services were on the scene very quickly.
‘It was terribly sad to know that just across the road people have lost their lives,’ she said. ‘People come down to swim, particularly in the summertime and I don’t think they realise there’s a riptide along here.’
Gary and Victoria Flint took their children to the beach for the day. Victoria, from Horsham, said: ‘We arrived at about three and soon after we heard the siren for the lifeboat.
‘We watched it launch then about 20 minutes later, it came back. Ambulances started arriving – more and more of them – then the air ambulances started.’
Another witness told ITV News: ‘I was up near the Coastguard tower when I saw two police officers come past me holding evidence bags after they looked to be going through belongings of, presumably, those who were involved in the incident.’
Alan Facer, 41, a fisherman from Hove, said the water would have been rough when the family got into trouble.
He said: ‘The wind earlier was south-westerly so usually the waves pick up quite a bit. At 3pm, the tide would have been quite high.’
MP for East Worthing and Shoreham Tom Rutland meanwhile described the incident as a ‘tragedy’, adding: ‘I am deeply saddened by the tragic news that three people have died following an incident in the water near Shoreham Fort this afternoon.
‘I spoke earlier with Sussex Police and Shoreham RNLI and have been briefed on the response by the emergency services.
‘My thoughts are with the family and friends of those who have lost their lives, and I know the whole community here in Shoreham will be hoping and praying for the recovery of the young girl receiving medical treatment in hospital.’
A spokesman from the RNLI said lifeboat crews were launched at around 2.50pm yesterday afternoon.
Two other lifeboats were also launched from the Brighton lifeboat station shortly after 3pm.
The coastguard, meanwhile, said ‘it responded to an incident reported at Shoreham at about 2.45pm’.
They added: ‘An HM Coastguard helicopter was sent as well as Littlehampton, Shoreham and Newhaven Coastguard Rescue Teams, and an RNLI lifeboat from Shoreham.’