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Seaford rescue: Search for two missing fishermen continues after boat sank off East Sussex coast

One man was found clinging to a lifebuoy on Saturday but the search continues for two other crew members.

The RNLI severn class Lifeboat head to Newhaven harbour after searching for the missing two fishermen that went missing near Seaford, Sussex, when their fishing boat, Joanna C, sank off the coast near Seaford, East Sussex on Saturday.
Image: The RNLI severn class lifeboat heads to Newhaven harbour on Saturday
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The search for two people who have been missing for more than 24 hours after a fishing boat sank off the coast of East Sussex continued on Sunday morning.

Two RNLI lifeboats and a helicopter were sent out on Saturday after the Joanna C sent out a distress signal at around 6am.

One man was found clinging to a lifebuoy and was pulled from the water.

Boats continue their search for the missing two fishermen that went missing near Seaford, Sussex, after their fishing boat, Joanna C, sank off the coast near Seaford, East Sussex on Saturday.
Image: Boats continue their search for crew members of the Joanna C on Sunday morning

Authorities continued the search for the other two crew members until it was called off at around 11pm.

The Joanna C is a 45ft scalloping vessel registered in Brixham. Its last known location was three nautical miles off the coast of Seaford, near Newhaven.

A RNLI lifeboat searches for the two missing fishermen
Image: The last known location of the Joanna C was three nautical miles off the coast of Seaford

Chris Thomas, deputy director of HM Coastguard, said: "HM Coastguard's National Maritime Operations Centre has coordinated a major rescue effort [on Saturday], with many units searching tirelessly since first light and finding one casualty who has been recovered safely to hospital.

"Sadly, two other crewmen have not yet been found and all our thoughts are with their families and friends.

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"It is testament to the local maritime community that HM Coastguard were so admirably supported throughout the day by nearby vessels and the local fishing communities who joined us in force and made strenuous efforts to locate their colleagues during the search.

"At one point, Coastguard coordinators described tracking 14 vessels covering the search plan area including the two RNLI all weather lifeboats at sea."