North Sea search for missing man off Suffolk coast stood down

Coastguard and lifeboat crews searched the sea off Southwold after reports of a man overboard

A search in the North Sea after a man reportedly went overboard from a ship off the Suffolk coast has been stood down.

Emergency services were called at about 10:30 BST on Friday to reports of a man missing from a vessel off Southwold.

RNLI lifeboats, aircraft from HM Coastguard and the Netherlands Coastguard were involved in the search.

HM Coastguard said the search ended at about 23:00 BST on Friday with no one being found.

It has not provided detail on the type of craft from which the man reportedly went missing or the circumstances surrounding events.

A spokeswoman for HM Coastguard said: "The search for a man reported missing from a ship in the North Sea, approximately 14 nautical miles east off Southwold yesterday has been stood down after an extensive search was not able to locate the man."

RNLI lifeboats from Lowestoft, Harwich and Aldeburgh were launched, later joined by crews from Gorleston, Norfolk, and Walton and Frinton, Essex.

Other vessels in the area also responded to calls for assistance in the search, HM Coastguard said.

Three fixed-wing aircraft - two from HM Coastguard and one from the Netherlands - were also involved.