Two men have died after going into the water at Seaton Carew beach in Hartlepool to try to help two children who had got into difficulty, Cleveland Police said.
Police, RNLI, Coastguard and North East Ambulance Service were called to the incident on Sunday at 3.45pm.
The men were pulled out of the water by RNLI staff and received immediate medical treatment, but were both pronounced dead a short time later.
Both children were taken to hospital to be checked over and are safe.
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