Shoreham sea deaths shock town's close-knit community

When a 14-year-old girl and her parents died after getting into difficulty in the water off the coast of Shoreham-by-Sea, residents told the BBC they were "devastated" and could not believe what had happened.

One woman described the event as "horrifying". Another said the community was "in mourning" for Sara El-Khawas and her parents - husband and wife Hassan El-Khawas, 55, and Zeina Alayn, 37 - who died on Tuesday.

On Friday it was confirmed that six-year-old Saja El-Khawas, the sister of Sara and daughter of Hassan and Zeina, had died in hospital.

Police say the family - British citizens of Palestinian origin, according to The Palestinian Forum - are believed to have gone into the water near Shoreham Fort in West Sussex.

The Adur Muslim Centre in Shoreham said the news of their deaths had been "like a shock wave" through the close-knit community.

Sara was a student at the Ellen Wilkinson School for Girls in Ealing, west London.

In a statement on its website, she was described as a "sweet girl, well-liked by staff and students".

One former student told BBC London she had seen Sara's photo on display when she arrived to collect her GCSE results.

"When I first found out, I was very shocked because she seemed like a very sweet girl," she said, adding it was a "tragedy for someone so young to pass away".

Abdul Mohit Noor, a trustee at the Muslim centre said the whole family were being included in all daily prayers.

"My heart goes out to the emergency services who were there at the scene," he said.

"Quite often we forget about them, but they're the people who have to deal with it first hand."

At Shoreham beach, the pile of flowers and messages has been growing steadily as people come to express their sadness.

Toby Venn, 21, said: "Everyone in Shoreham is feeling the effect of it."

He said the sea got "really, really choppy" near Shoreham Fort and there needed to be even "bigger signs planted along the beach".

His sister, Neve Venn, 22, said: "I go to Shoreham Beach and it's always kids laughing, families having fun enjoying themselves - but obviously once you go in the sea, it's a completely different story."

The family are thought to have travelled to Shoreham from London on the same day of the incident, which is believed to be a tragic accident with no third-party involvement, Sussex Police said.

Speaking to BBC Sussex, Deputy Chief Constable Paul Court praised the work of his officers and other emergency services, adding the response had been "really professionally managed".

Local councillor Joss Loader, who represents the Shoreham Beach Residents' Association and has lived in the area most of her life, described the deaths as a "shocking, heart-rending tragedy".

"My thoughts and prayers are with the victims' family and friends," she said.

The councillor also said the beach was "a challenging environment and it can be difficult to get in and out of the sea, during certain conditions".

Neha Patel, who runs a local shop, said she had "no words" to express her shock.

She said the community would "stay together, pull together, help each other, support each other in whatever way we can" as it tried to come to terms with what had happened.

"It's such a small area and everybody knows everyone and they're always there for other people," she added.

The Venerable Martin Lloyd Williams, Archdeacon of Brighton and Lewes, said there would be "ongoing support and care" at local churches.

"The trauma and the wounds and the psychological impact the spiritual damage that these things cause goes on an awfully long time," he said.

"We are in it for the long haul with the community. That's what we've always done."

He added churches had "been here for the best part of a thousand years caring for people at points of deepest need".

"That's what we do, that's what we'll go on doing," he said.

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