The parents of Rebecca Hopper, the two-year-old girl who died after falling into the sea off the Kent coast, have described their daughter as a "special little girl".

Rebecca, from Chatham was declared dead as she was being airlifted to a London hospital after the incident at about 2.45pm Sunday at the Warren Apron, Folkestone.

She was due to celebrate her third birthday next Wednesday.

Investigations are continuing into the tragedy. Rebecca and her eight-month old brother, Lewis, were strapped into their buggy when it was apparently blown into the sea.

Lewis is being treated for hypothermia at Ashford's William Harvey Hospital with father Andrew, 38, and mum, Sarah, 35, by his side.

Andrew and Sarah said: "Rebecca was our sweet, gorgeous little girl. She 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."

Witnesses have spoken of the desperate attempts to save Rebecca.

Jeremy Francis, who has a boat on the beach nearby, said he was alerted by a woman running along saying that someone was in the water.

~ Audio: Jeremy Francis describes the rescue attempt to kmfm >>>

~ Audio: Pete Legg from Dover Coastguard explains to kmfm what happened >>>

He said: "It's every parent's nightmare, it's a terrible thing. When we got there there were four people in the water, two small babies and two adults.

"The people who were there were fantastic. Everyone just took a role and dealt with the situation as best as they could."

Both the Dover Lifeboat and Folkestone Coastguard team were scrambled to the scene along with the Kent Air Ambulance.

Dover coastguard Barry Woodward said: "What was supposed to be a day out turned into a tragic accident. Our sympathies go out to the family."

Andrew and Sarah added: "We would like to thank the London Hospital for all their efforts to save our little girl and the William Harvey Hospital staff for all their help and support for Lewis, who is coming along really well.

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

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