Girl’s body found in search for missing teenager
A body has been found two weeks after a 15-year-old girl was swept out to sea.
Humberside Police said that due to the difficult conditions at Withernsea in East Yorkshire, the body had not yet been recovered from the rocks and no official identification had yet been made.
The discovery comes after 15-year-old Grace Keeling was swept into the water on January 2 and an extensive search has been carried out over the past two weeks to find her.
The body of Grace’s mother, Sarah Keeling, and a member of the public who died trying to help save mother-daughter duo Mark Ratcliffe, were found on the evening of January 2. Police have not yet officially identified the body.
Emergency services were unable to provide a safe rescue due to high tide but secured the area using special equipment. Officers worked throughout Friday to recover the body but were hampered by tide times, conditions and location.
The rescue mission was paused until it was safe to continue.
Detective Superintendent Simon Vickers said: “A body was located by Humberside Police Search Advisors at around 8.30am, but due to tide times and conditions, despite every effort, it was not possible to effect a safe rescue before high tide. “The location was secured overnight using specialist equipment and a cordon remains in place around the area.
“Today (Friday 16 January 2026), officers and specialist teams are attempting to explore every possible option to recover the body sensitively in very complex circumstances. However, due to tide times, conditions and location, the recovery could not be carried out immediately and was therefore paused until it was safe to proceed.
“Although no formal identification has been made at this time, we accept that this discovery occurred after 15-year-old Grace Keeling was swept into the water on Friday 2 January 2026 and extensive searches have been carried out over the last thirteen days to locate her.
“I appreciate that this update will understandably cause concern from the public, but I would like to reassure you that we have a dedicated team of experts doing everything they can to carry out the rescue as safely and quickly as possible.
“Specialist officers have contacted Grace’s family to inform them of this discovery. We would ask people to please respect their privacy and avoid speculation. We would also ask members of the public to avoid the area so emergency services can operate safely.
“Further updates will be provided as soon as possible.”
