A mother and daughter who drowned off the Essex coast were swept out to sea by a “very strong” tide, a relative has said.

Shahin Ahmed said six members of his family were paddling at West Mersea beach when they were knocked off their feet on Wednesday afternoon.

Shelina Rahman, 41, and 15-year-old Sameeha, died in the tragedy, while Ahmed’s seven-year-old son Musa was airlifted to hospital in a critical condition.

Ahmed said his son, who is from east London, remained on a life support machine at a hospital in London.

Three others were also taken to another hospital by ambulance after the incident. Ahmed said 12 of them were visiting West Mersea that day.

“This was 20 minutes before we were going to go home. The whole day, alhamdulillah (praise be to God), was really nice,” Ahmed told Bangladeshi newspaper Surma News.