Tributes have been paid to a mother and her teenage daughter who died after reportedly trying to save a seven-year-old relative who got into difficulty in the sea during a family day out in Essex.
Shally Rahman, 42, and her daughter Samiha, 15, from east London, lost their lives following the tragedy at West Mersea, near Colchester.
The seven-year-old boy, understood to be Samiha’s cousin, was rescued from the water and taken to hospital, where police said he remained in a critical condition.
What had begun as an ordinary summer outing for an extended family ended in unimaginable loss, leaving relatives and members of the wider community struggling to comprehend the deaths of a mother and daughter.
Bradford West MP Naz Shah, who knew the family, said she was “absolutely heartbroken”.
“They’re a lovely, lovely family,” she said. “It’s sent shockwaves through the community.
“I just can’t believe what’s happened. I’ve spoken to the family, and I just broke down, I’ve got a 14-year-old myself.”
She also thanked the emergency services and urged families to follow water safety advice.
Around ten members of the British-Bangladeshi family are understood to have travelled to the Essex coast for the day.
Matiur Rahman, Shally’s brother-in-law, told the BBC he learned what had happened in a telephone call from his brother.
“They went in Colchester, [to the] seaside and they were near water and playing with them then suddenly a big wave came,” he said.
Family friend Mishba Uddin, from Colchester, said he understood that the younger child had first got into difficulty before an older cousin attempted to help.
“The little one got into trouble then the other one tried to save” the child, he said.
Mr Uddin described those involved simply as “a working class family going for a day out”.
“We as a whole community are in shock actually,” he said.
“They are a very nice and likeable family. Just going for a day out.”
Shally is understood to have been a teacher and was the wife of Dr Monsur Rahman, leader of Jubo Dal UK, the youth wing of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Dr Rahman is reportedly the son of Sylhet BNP leader Sheikh Mokhon Mia.
But amid references to political and community connections, those who knew the family have focused their tributes on the two lives lost and the devastating circumstances in which an ordinary family outing ended.
Essex Police said its investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident was continuing.
Detective Chief Inspector Al Pitcher said: “My thoughts, and those of my team, are with the friends and family of the woman and girl who died yesterday.
“Since yesterday we have been working to establish the circumstances which led up to this incident. At this stage we believe they were trying to help a seven-year-old boy who had got into difficulties.
“The boy was taken to hospital where he remains in a critical condition but the woman and teenage girl, sadly, died.
“All the people involved in this incident are related to each other.”
Emergency services were called at around 5.35pm on Wednesday 22 July following reports that several people were in difficulty in the water near Seaview Avenue.
The East of England Ambulance Service sent multiple resources, including its Hazardous Area Response Team, critical care paramedics and two air ambulances.
Despite attempts to save them, Shally and Samiha could not be resuscitated.
One patient was flown to hospital and another three were taken by road.
As the emergency unfolded, members of the public also attempted to rescue those caught in the water.
Colchester councillor Carl Powling said his daughter was among the three girls, with one directing police to the scene by telephone while the other two assisted on the beach with first aid and tried to prevent people from filming those caught up in the emergency.
They continued helping until the coastguard arrived.
The deaths have prompted tributes beyond Essex, particularly among communities in east London.
The Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Lutfur Rahman said he knew the family and described their loss as especially painful for the community.
“I am deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Shally Rahman and her daughter, Samiha Rahman, at Essex beach,” he said.
“My heartfelt prayers and thoughts are with their family and all those affected by this heartbreaking event.”
He said Shally was the daughter of a well-known Tower Hamlets businessman and added that the tragedy highlighted the importance of water safety and swimming education.
Offering prayers for the mother and daughter, he said: “May Allah (SWT) grant Shally and Samiha the highest place in Jannatul Firdaus, accept them among the righteous, and give their family patience, strength, and comfort during this immensely difficult time. Ameen.”
Prime Minister Andy Burnham also expressed his sadness over the deaths and thanked the emergency services for their response.
The tragedy has left two communities – the family’s home community in east London and those in West Mersea who witnessed and responded to the emergency – united in grief.
For Shally and Samiha’s family, however, a summer day by the sea has brought a loss that will extend far beyond the beach where the tragedy unfolded.
A mother and daughter who had travelled to the coast with their family are now being mourned together, remembered by those who knew them as members of a much-loved family and, according to police, as two people whose final actions were an attempt to help a young child in danger.
Essex Police has asked anyone who witnessed the incident or has information or footage that could assist its investigation to contact officers on 101, quoting incident 1090.
