An electrician from Purley joined the struggle to save the life of a toddler and her baby brother after their buggy was pulled into the sea in Kent.

Despite his efforts two-year-old Rebecca Hopper died but her eight-month-old brother Lewis was saved.

Jeremy Francis, 54, was having a cup of tea on his boat with a friend near the promenade at Warren Apron, Folkstone when he heard cries and saw two adults and two children floating in the water.

His friend, a local Lloyds TSB bank manager, jumped into the water with a harness around his waist, while Mr Francis stood on dry land holding the rope.

Shaun Joyce, 44, reached the baby boy first and passed him to people on the promenade before pulling the little girl out of the water and helping the adults.

Mr Francis said that there were about five others helping to rescue the family from Chatham, Kent.

He told a national newspaper: “When we got there the two children were both floating face down, utterly lifeless, it was a horrendous sight, we knew we had to get them out as quickly as we could.”

Mr Francis said others tried revive the children while he helped pull the adults from the water.

"The father screamed 'are they dead?' and I replied 'no, no, they are both OK'. I keep replaying that over in my mind but I didn't know what else to say, even though I knew one of them was really struggling."

It is thought that the children were in a double buggy when they were pulled into the sea by waves. Their father, Andrew who was with a female friend, dived in and tried to free them from the buggy while yelling for help.

Paramedics and an air ambulance arrived on the scene within 15 minutes. The toddler was airlifted to a London hospital where she later died.

Her brother is in hospital in Ashford with hother Sarah at his bedside.

Police said Mr Hopper collapsed from shock after the incident. He is with his wife and son in hospital and was expected to be discharged today.

Mr Francis told the press: “The way everyone on the beach reacted restored my faith in human nature, everybody pulled together like a team to save that family, if only we could have saved them all.

The accident happened just before 3pm, when the tide was high and strong waves were washing against the shore.

Police are investigating how the buggy fell into the water and are appealing for witnesses.

A spokeswoman said: “At the moment we are treating this as a tragic incident.”

Mr and Mrs Hopper today paid tribute to their "sweet, gorgeous little girl".

In a statement issued by Kent Police, the parents said: "Rebecca ... was a special little girl with a special place in all our hearts.

"She will be sorely missed by everyone who knew her. We love her so much and she will be in our hearts forever."

It added: "We would like to thank all the emergency service and the members of the public who were involved in the rescue."