Inquest into death of teenage storm photographer

An open verdict has been recorded on the death of a young Devon man who went to photograph the New Year storms. An inquest in Plymouth was told there was no conclusive evidence about how he died.

Hundreds of local people turned out to help in the search for 18-year-old Harry Martin who was missing for ten days before his body was found.

John Andrews reports:

An inquest into the death of 18 year old Harry Martin will begin in Plymouth this morning. Harry's body was found at Carswell Cove after a 10 day search. He'd gone out to take photos of the stormy sea on the 2nd of January near his home in Noss Mayo.

A West Country village has been coming to terms with the news that a body has been found in the search for the the missing eighteen year old Harry Martin who came from Membland near Noss Mayo

Prayers were said at churches in South Devon today for the teenager Harry Martin who went missing last week. Yesterday a body was found in Carswell Cove, and a formal identification will take place on Monday 13 January.

A body's been found in the search for missing South Devon teenager Harry Martin.

Canoeists made the discovery at Carswell Cove , Bigbury Bay, south of Harry's home at Membland.

The 18-year-old went missing last week after going out to photograph the stormy coastal conditions.

Jeff Welch reports:

Police searching for missing South Devon teenager Harry Martin have found a body.

The 18-year-old from Membland, Newton Ferrers, was last seen on January 2nd heading towards the coast to take photographs of the storms.

An unofficial search party was organised this morning, and a body was discovered in the sea by canoeists at Bigbury Bay. It was brought to shore by the Plymouth Lifeboat.

A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: "We were informed by coastguards at about 10.40 this morning.

"I must stress that the body has not been identified at this stage."

Emergency services including the Urban Search and Rescue Group, Dartmoor Rescue Group, Coastguards, the inshore and offshore lifeboats, the RAF Chivenor search and rescue helicopter, together with members of the local community have all been involved in the search since Harry's disappearance.

Police say they 'do not discourage' the public from looking for missing teenager Harry Martin, but warn that some coastal areas have been left treacherous after the recent bad weather.

Previously Devon & Cornwall Police had said the public's help was not required. But they have now scaled down their own search.

Read more: Search for missing teenager

Police say the search for missing 18 year-old Harry Martin has been scaled down, from 'active' to 'responsive'. This means the search in its current form will end and only be resumed if and when police receive new information.

Officers will be talking to residents in Harry's home town of Newton Ferrers, Devon, over the weekend to try to find out more about his disappearance. They say their search has exhausted all potential locations in the area.

Read more: Search for missing teenager

Devon and Cornwall Police say the search for Harry Martin from Newton Ferrars, who disappeared after going out to take pictures of the storm last Thursday, 2 January, is continuing.

They say specialist search teams and the police dive squad have been looking in areas that they couldn't get to before. They are also going over areas that they've already investigated.

Officers will continue to search for the rest of this week. The force says they appreciate the support of the community but do not need any help from the public to look for Harry.

The Police have asked the public not to take part in the search for missing teenager Harry Martin because conditions are now too dangerous.

The 18-year-old hasn't been seen since he left his home near Noss Mayo last Thursday.

The film production student is believed to have gone out to take photos of the weather and was last seen walking in the direction of a Coast Path. Jeff Welch reports.