A man arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after a schoolgirl and a teenage boy died off the coast of Bournemouth beach has been released under investigation.
Police say enquiries are continuing after released the man, aged in his 40s, on Thursday afternoon.
In a press conference, police said the man is not related to the 12-year-old girl, from High Wycombe, or 17-year-old boy, from Southampton, who died on Wednesday.
Detectives are continuing to investigate the circumstances of the two children’s deaths, who were from separate families visiting Bournemouth beach.
It was revealed today the 12-year-old girl was from High Wycombe and the 17-year-old boy was from Southampton.
Police have said the arrested man was “on the water” at the time of the incident and remain tight-lipped about how the two children came to their deaths.
However, they have said no vessel has come into physical contact with any swimmer at the time and that the incident is “not linked to people jumping from the pier”.
Eight other people were rescued and treated for injuries not believed to be life-threatening.
Detective Chief Superintendent Neil Corrigan, of Dorset Police, said: “Our thoughts remain very much with the loved ones of the two young people at this horrendous time and we are doing all we can to support their families.
“We are continuing with our investigation, which is still at the early stages, and would ask people not to speculate about the circumstances surrounding the incident to both protect our enquiries and out of respect for the victims’ families.
“Early investigation indicates that there was no physical contact between a vessel and any swimmers at the time of the incident and there is no suggestion of people jumping from the pier or jet skis being involved.
“We know that the beach was very busy when this incident occurred. I am urging anyone who saw what happened, or has any information that may assist our investigation, to please come forward.
“Also, I urge anyone with relevant phone footage that may assist our enquiries to submit it to Dorset Police via the Major Incident Public Portal quoting Operation Marble rather than sharing it on social media.
“I would like to sincerely thank the members of the public who went to help the people in trouble in the water. I am also very grateful for the wider beachgoers who cleared the beach really quickly and allowed the emergency services to do their work.
“This incident sparked a multi-agency response from a range of emergency services, including the ambulance service, HM Coastguard, the RNLI, the fire service, BCP Council and Dorset Police. All these emergency responders came together to provide a really swift and well-coordinated response and did everything they could to save lives. I thank all of those responders for their professionalism and compassion in the face of this tragedy.
“We will have our local neighbourhood officers out on patrol over the coming days alongside our colleagues from the beach services at the local council and the RNLI. So if you have any information about the incident, or any concerns please do approach them."
Anyone with information is asked to submit it via https://mipp.police.uk/operation/55HQ23M93-PO1. If you are unable to submit information online, call 101 quoting occurrence number 55230083818.
Alternatively, independent charity Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously online at Crimestoppers-uk.org or by calling Freephone 0800 555 111.
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