Essex Police have confirmed the deaths of a woman and child after several people got into difficulty in the water at West Mersea beach on Wednesday evening. Another person is in hospital
Police have given a tragic update(Image: BBC)
A woman and teen girl have died at a popular UK beach after emergency services swarmed the scene on Wednesday evening.
West Mersea beach, in Essex, was cordoned off by police on July 22 due to the incident, following reports of individuals in distress in the water. The West Mersea Coastguard Rescue Team posted on Facebook early Thursday that they had responded to an incident near Seaview Avenue in West Mersea, Colchester, on Wednesday evening.
A spokesperson for Essex Police has now confirmed that two people, a woman and teen girl, have tragically passed away. He said: “We were called by the ambulance service at 5.35pm on Wednesday 22 July after reports that several people had got into difficulty in the water near Seaview Avenue.
The Coastguard was spotted helping at the scene on the beach at West Mersea(Image: BBC)
“Despite the efforts of the emergency services, we can sadly confirm that a teenage girl and a woman in her 40s have died.
“A third person remains in hospital in a serious condition. Our thoughts are with the family and loved ones of those affected at this very difficult time.”
Detective Chief Inspector Al Pitcher said: “Today, our thoughts remain with the family members who are coming to terms with their loss.
Floral tributes have been left at the beach on Thursday morning
“We are grateful to the people who have already spoken to us and helped with our enquiries. We would ask anyone who was at the beach at the time, and who has not yet spoken with officers, to please get in touch, to help us understand what happened.”
At this stage in enquiries, police believe those involved in the incident knew each other. Anyone who was in the area at the time and has information or footage which may assist the investigation is asked to contact 101 and quote incident 1090.
This is a breaking news story and is being constantly updated. Please refresh the page regularly with the latest news, pictures and videos.
You can also get email updates on the day’s biggest stories straight to your inbox by signing up for our newsletters.
Get all the very best headlines, pictures, opinion and video on the stories that matter to you by following Daily Star every time you see our name.
Follow Daily Star on Android – CLICK HERE
Follow Daily Star on Apple – CLICK HERE
Follow Daily Star on Snapchat – CLICK HERE
You can also sign up for Twitter alerts for breaking news by following @starbreaksnews and follow us @dailystar for all the latest updates.
Keep up-to-date with your must-see news, features, videos and pictures throughout the day by following us on Facebook at facebook.com/thedailystar.
