A man who fell off a yacht in the English Channel has been tragically discovered deceased. The incident occurred near the Rampion Offshore Wind Farm, off the coast of Newhaven in East Sussex. The HM Coastguard received a distress call at 10.19am reporting the man overboard. Rescue efforts were immediately launched, involving Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboats from Shoreham and Newhaven, a coastguard rescue helicopter, a fixed-wing aircraft, and two nearby vessels.
Sussex Police confirmed that the man’s body was retrieved from the sea following a search operation. The identity of the man has been established, and the next-of-kin have been notified. The authorities expressed condolences to the family and stated that investigations are ongoing with no further details available at this time.
An RNLI spokesperson mentioned that the rescue operation concluded at 1pm. The RNLI teams were part of the coordinated response to the man overboard incident, with the Coastguard mobilizing Newhaven RNLI and Shoreham RNLI promptly after the initial reports. The individual was rescued by a helicopter, and the remaining passenger and vessel were safely returned to shore, with all agencies concluding the operation at 13:00.