Two bodies have been pulled from rough seas as the UK is battered by Storm Dennis.
One man was found on Saturday after a huge search operation off Margate, Kent, after an early-morning distress call, and another was found at Herne Bay.
Lifeboats and the coastguard helicopter had been scouring the sea near Margate Harbour after reports of a man overboard, HM Coastguard said.
HMS Westminster was also believed to have responded to a relay call, and has been in the area, according to ship-tracking data.
A distress call was received by the coastguard at 5.41am and an extensive search of the area began, with emergency services battling rough seas and challenging conditions.
A body was later pulled from the water.
A coastguard spokesman said: “At around 1pm, after many hours of searching, a body was sadly found in the water by the RNLI Margate lifeboat and has been brought to shore.”
The distress call is believed to have come from B Gas Margrethe, a 99-metre Maltese tanker that had been anchored off the coast of Margate.
Police are trying to establish the man’s identity so that next of kin can be informed, a spokesman said.
In a separate incident, Kent Police were called at 12.15pm on Saturday to a report a person had been pulled from the sea in Herne Bay.
Officers attended with fire and ambulance services and a man was declared dead at the scene.
Next of kin are aware and the death is not being treated as suspicious, police said.
