THE search for a man who entered the water in Burnham-on-Sea to help a woman and her dog has entered its third day.

The man is believed to have entered the water near Burnham jetty to assist a woman and her dog in difficulty.

Whilst they managed to get to safety, the man remains missing.

The man was last seen at around 4pm on Sunday (October 29). Coastguard rescue teams and the emergency services were contacted soon after and have been searching the area ever since, including the rivers Parrett and Brue.

Extensive shoreline searches have been carried out. Helicopters using heat-seeking equipment have also been deployed.

Posting on Facebook yesterday (Monday, October 30), a spokesperson from Weston's RNLI team said: "At 17:40 yesterday, the Coastguard paged a request to launch both Weston boats to assist Burnham Lifeboat team in a search for a missing male adult near Burnham Pier.

"Both lifeboats joined Burnham's two as well as two helicopters. The Atlantic crew were at sea for a staggering seven hours and on the smaller D-class we swapped crews at Burnham-on-Sea mid-way through the operation.

"An extensive search was undertaken of the shoreline, estuaries of the River Brue and Parret and surrounding river banks, but nothing was found.

"After mooring the Atlantic B class, the crew returned to station at 0:30 with the D class rehoused and readied again for service by 01:45."

Speaking yesterday, a spokesperson from HM Coastguard added: "HM Coastguard has been coordinating the response to two people in difficulty in the water at Burnham-on-Sea.

"First alerted to the incident at around 4pm yesterday (29 October), Coastguard Rescue Teams from Burnham, Weston-Super-Mare and Watchet, lifeboats from Burnham and Weston-Super-Mare RNLI and Coastguard helicopters from Lee-on-the-Solent and St Athan were sent to the scene, alongside Burnham Area Rescue Boat, Avon and Somerset Police and South Western Ambulance Service.

"A woman and dog were recovered from the water and transferred into the care of the ambulance service. After extensive maritime searches into the night, the search for a second casualty was suspended at around 11pm and will resume today (30 October)."

Coastguard teams, BARB Search & Rescue, the emergency services and more will continue the search today.