Grace and Sarah Keeling got into difficulty in the sea on Friday 2 January.Credit: Family photograph

A mother who died in the sea off the East Yorkshire coast has been named along with her teenage daughter who remains missing.

Sarah Keeling, who was 45, and her 15-year-old daughter, Grace, went missing off Withernsea on Friday 2 January, sparking a huge search and rescue operation.

It is believed Sarah Keeling went into the water to try to save her daughter after she was swept into the sea.

Humberside Police said Sarah’s body was recovered on Friday evening. Grace has not been found.

Member of the public Mark Ratcliffe, 67, died trying to rescue them.

He was found unconscious in the water shortly after emergency services arrived and died a short time later.

Both families are being supported by specially trained officers, Humberside Police said.

Mark Ratcliffe died trying to rescue the mother and daughter.

Tributes have been paid to Sarah and Grace, who were from Sutton-in-Ashfield in Nottinghamshire.

In a Facebook post, Vicki Watson, who played netball with Grace, described her as a “legend of the court”.

She added: “Still can’t get my head around the devastating news.”

Julie Winter, who was part of a running group with Sarah Keeling, said she was a “beautiful person inside and out and will be greatly missed by us all.”

She added: “We will keep running/walking and doing new adventures in memory of you.”

Amanda Davis described Sarah and Grace as “the most beautiful people inside and out”.

Eyewitnesses said people tried to help after they saw a young woman get swept out to sea.

Rescuers worked in challenging weather conditions on Saturday to try to locate Grace.

In a statement, Mr Ratcliffe’s family described him as “a true selfless hero with a heart of gold, who was so cruelly taken trying to save others”.

The statement added: “So many lives are now shattered that you’re gone. You were loved by so many people, and we will all miss you forever.

“A loving husband, father, son, brother and the best grandad anybody could ever wish for. Sleep tight, we love you, we miss you.”

The RNLI, HM Coastguard and Humberside Police were all involved in the initial search and rescue operation. HM Coastguard called off their search on Saturday afternoon.