Three family members die in sea incident off Shoreham-by-Sea

Three members of the same family died after getting into difficulty in the sea off Shoreham-by-Sea on England’s Sussex coast, with a younger girl from the family in critical condition, according to the Independent. The incident involved four people in distress in open water near Shoreham Harbour, and drew a large multi-agency response on Tuesday afternoon.

Sussex Police said emergency services were called to reports of four people in difficulty near Shoreham Fort. The Independent reports that several ambulances and two air ambulances were seen near the RNLI station, and that a section of the A259 was closed as the rescue and medical response continued.

HM Coastguard said it received the call at about 2:45pm and deployed a helicopter, Coastguard Rescue Teams from Littlehampton, Shoreham and Newhaven, and an RNLI lifeboat from Shoreham. The South East Coast Ambulance Service also attended with multiple resources after being called shortly after 3pm, but at the time of reporting it had not provided further details.

The mechanics of such incidents are often mundane: a small number of people enter open water, conditions change quickly, and the moment becomes a logistics problem—boats, helicopters, trained volunteers, road closures—whose outcome is decided before most of those assets arrive. Shoreham RNLI was tasked at around 3pm, the Independent reports, and at least one ambulance was seen leaving under police escort.

Authorities urged the public to stay clear of the area while the response was ongoing. The names of those involved were not reported.

By late afternoon, the A259 was still blocked in both directions between New Road and Kingston Lane as emergency vehicles worked near the harbour.