Tributes paid to father and daughter killed after being swept in to sea
Tributes have been paid to a father and daughter who were killed after being swept into the sea in Cornwall.
A grieving mum has paid tribute to her "precious" daughter and the "loved" father to her children, who died earlier this month.
Matthew Philip Smith, 47, and Bonnie Marie Smith, 26, were killed after being washed from the harbour wall at Mullion Cove during stormy weather on 2 November.
The father and daughter, from Abbeydale in Gloucester, were winched from the water during a huge rescue effort but sadly could not be saved.
Bonnie's mum Theresa has paid tribute to her "beautiful and precious baby girl" in a moving Facebook post.
Writing two days after the tragedy, Theresa said: "Me and my boys need time to come to terms with the tragic events of Monday evening when my baby girl was taken away from us.
"My two boys have been so strong and amazing, not only have they lost their sister, they have lost their dad. So please give them the space they need."
Matthew's devastated dad, James Smith, 71, says he's heartbroken over the deaths of his son and granddaughter.
He told The Sun Online: "Matthew was my best friend in the whole world. I miss him so much. He was loved by everyone. His family loved him and his engineers at work loved him.
"Bonnie was an absolutely adorable young woman who had followed in her father’s footsteps to become an engineer at the same company."
Bonnie and Matthew had been in Cornwall with her brothers, Mitchel, 22, and Oliver, 20.
Photos that emerged from the scene of the rescue at Mullion Cove showed a coastguard helicopter searching the waters and what appeared to be an RNLI lifeboat below,weathering choppy conditions.
The coastguard confirmed that the Penlee and the Lizard lifeboats assisted with the operation, joining coastguard rescue teams from Mullion and Porthleven. A HM Coastguard helicopter from Newquay was also present.
Witnesses described sea conditions as savage, saying waves were crashing over the harbour wall and that the water inside the harbour itself was “boiling”.
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