Key Highlights
- Sleep tight, we love you, we miss you."Mr Ratcliffe's son, in a Facebook post, thanked the RNLI, HM coastguards and the emergency services who had done "all they could" and worked tirelessly and relentlessly in awful weather conditions."Bye Dad, I miss you and I will never forget the true hero and role model you were," he wrote. BBC/Becki BowdenFloral tributes have been placed close to the scene on the promenadeAt 15:10 GMT on Friday, the coastguard responded to reports of "a number of people in difficulty" in the water. Eyewitnesses said they had seen people rushing into the sea to rescue a young woman who had fallen in. What followed was a huge search and rescue operation involving about 100 emergency workers, a rescue helicopter, air ambulance and RNLI crews from Withernsea, Bridlington and Hornsea Inshore Rescue. The search was paused at about 00:30 on Saturday and resumed at first light but was stood down at 16:00. The RNLI thanked members of the public who they said had "assisted and supported" the emergency services."This is a very tragic incident and our thoughts are with the families, friends and all those impacted," they said in a statement on Sunday. Services took place at Withernsea Methodist Church earlier to allow people to reflect on what had happened and light candles for those who had died. People have also placed flowers on the promenade.
- Janice Holgate, who travelled from Hull, said it had been "absolutely devastating" to hear what had happened."I had to pay my respects just to let the families know that people are thinking about them," she said. Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devicesMore on this storyThe 'happy little town' left reeling from sea deathsWithernsea.
