Five men died in the sea at Camber Sands beach in East Sussex yesterday, the hottest day of the year, and the investigation into their deaths is ongoing.
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The five men had gone to the coast for a day trip from London.
The men, who couldn’t swim, had driven down from London in one vehicle for a day out at the beach when they got into difficulty.
The five men including two brothers have been identified as Nitharsan Ravi, 22, Inthushan Srim, 23, Kobi Nathan, 22, Ken Nathan, 19, and Kurushanth Anna, 27.
Mr Ravi, originally from Plumstead, south-east London, had studied at the University of Brighton, according to his Facebook page.
It was earlier thought a sixth person was missing but police have confirmed no further search is happening.
No lifeguards are posted to the beach, Rother District Council confirmed with The Independent, but the beach patrol were alerted and the coastguard was called.
‘This has been an incredibly tragic incident and we are offering their next of kin support at this hard time and our thoughts are with them’. “A lifeguard could have saved their lives”.
The first three men were pulled from the sea in the early afternoon on Wednesday.
An online petition started a month ago to campaign for lifeguards at Camber has reached more than 3,600 signatures.
A spokesman said: “You will, no doubt, have read or listened to the news today and heard the bad and tragic news of five deaths at Camber Sands yesterday”.
Last month 19-year-old Brazilian Gustavo Silva Da Cruz died while swimming off the famous beach.
They both had a pulse for 15 minutes while paramedics tried to save them.
The force’s Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne said: “People need to understand that although the sun is shining and the sea is lovely to play in there are dangers there that you need to know about”.
The bodies of Ken and Mr Sriskantharasa were discovered later that evening, he said, adding that he thought they had got their legs caught in the “slippery mud” and sand on the seabed.
Mr Ravi’s brother said his brother died after trying to rescue two of his friends who had become trapped beneath the water.
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A second woman told Sky News that the beach could be deceptively unsafe, adding: “The tides come in around the banks so people are sitting on the banks and don’t realise the water’s coming in behind them”.
