A 13-year-old British boy is feared dead after he was swept into the sea in northern France.
It is understood the teenager had been with his two younger brothers when he got into difficulty on the beach in Boulogne.
A rescue operation was launched shortly after 6pm on Monday evening and continued late into the night but the boy could not be found.
A search involving police and a fire crew resumed on Tuesday morning, but it is not expected the teenager will be recovered alive, the president of Boulogne lifeboat station said.
Gerard Barron said the boy, thought to have been on holiday in the area with his family, had been in a channel which is not for use by swimmers or bathers, and where the water flows “fairly fast”.
He said the youngster’s chances of survival after such a long time were non-existent.
He told the Press Association: “At this time of the year for somebody in tip-top condition the temperature of the water indicates a maximum survival time of about two to two and a half hours.
“So obviously this morning there is absolutely no chance of finding him alive. The search is now being done by the police and the fire brigade. It is now a judicial inquiry.”
Nicolas Leclet, of the fire and rescue department, said a witness told his colleagues the two younger boys tried to help their sibling.
He said: “They tried to help him but as yet we do not know exactly what has happened. It will be decided later whether to continue the search.”
A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: “We are providing support to the family of a British national who has been reported missing at sea in Boulogne sur Mer, France.
“Our thoughts are with them at this difficult time. We are in close contact with the local authorities.”
