Wayne Taylor, a father of three, has been named as the man who died attempting to rescue his two children from the sea at Seaton Carew beach in Hartlepool on Sunday, July 12. A second man, who was walking his dog with his partner, also drowned during the rescue effort.
Incident Details
The tragedy unfolded around 3:45 pm when two of Mr. Taylor's children, a boy aged 11 or 12 and a younger girl, got into difficulty in the water. Mr. Taylor, along with fellow beachgoer Davey Short and another unidentified man, entered the sea to help. The RNLI recovered the two men from the water, but they were pronounced dead shortly after. The children were brought to safety and taken to hospital as a precaution, sustaining no serious injuries.
Davey Short, who also helped, described the scene to The Mirror: "There were three children at the beach with their mam and dad... The two younger kids were in the sea and started to struggle. I saw a second figure next to the boy and he was face down in the water." He added that the children's mother was "hysterical" on the beach.
Official Response
Superintendent Glen Ward of Cleveland Police expressed condolences: "Our deepest sympathies go out to the families of both the men involved in this tragic incident today." He confirmed the deaths are not being treated as suspicious and a file will be prepared for the Coroner. He also warned against the dangers of open water: "We know it is inviting in the hot weather, but we would encourage people to refrain from entering any open water at all."
Tributes and Fundraising
Tributes have poured in for Mr. Taylor. A family friend wrote on Facebook: "Wayne Taylor (Tim)... thanks so much for being the most amazing best friend to my Liam... RIP mate, absolute hero." A GoFundMe campaign has raised over £31,000 to support Mr. Taylor's family with funeral expenses and his children.
