Overview
- HM Coastguard stood down its extensive operation on 3 January after shoreline searches resumed at first light, with one person still unlocated.
- A 67-year-old man was recovered from the sea unconscious and died shortly afterward, and a second body was retrieved later on Friday evening; police say the deaths are not being treated as suspicious.
- The response began around 3:10–3:15pm on 2 January after reports of multiple people in difficulty off Central Promenade in Withernsea.
- Eyewitnesses reported a teenage girl was knocked into the water by a large wave near the Pier Towers steps as relatives and bystanders entered the sea to try to help.
- The multi-agency search deployed Coastguard rescue teams, RNLI lifeboats, a helicopter and fixed‑wing aircraft, but heavy snow, freezing temperatures and large breaking waves limited some launches.