A swimmer died in the sea in Brighton today after getting into difficulties.
He went missing just after 2pm and was washed ashore just before 5.30pm.
His body was found shortly after an air and sea search by the RNLI, Sussex Police and the coastguard had been stood down.
Desperate attempts were made to resuscitate the 24-year-old man who was believed to have come to Brighton from London with friends.
He was reported to have been one of four people who went into the sea together but he went under and didn’t come back up.
He went missing between the piers and was washed ashore on a beach near the bottom of West Street where the attempts were made to revive him.
The RNLI Brighton lifeboat was joined by a passing lifeboat, a team of eight Brighton and Hove City Council beach lifeguards and the coastguard helicopter from Lee on Solent.
A spokesman for the RNLI said: “There was quite an intense and extensive search between the piers.”
I witnessed this tragic death. Unfortunately his friends thought he was larking around at first but when they realised he was in difficulty they started screaming for help. A member of the public seated just in front of us rushed into the water but was unable to find him. A lifeguard then appeared but it took a full five minutes for any more lifeguards to come to his aid and a full ten minutes before any more joined him.
I do feel that if the lifeguards had been on a raised lookout station on the beach (like they have on many beaches around the world) they would have been in a better position to see what was happening (as it was they (2 lifeguards) were sitting down behind the screen. The beach was packed with holiday makers but only a few people in the sea, mainly on the shore. The view from the lifeguard station was very limited. I did not feel they acted with any real urgency at first, when my sons were caught by a rip in America the lifeguards were so quick they had them out of the water within minutes.