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Witness speaks of moment three-year-old boy was swept out to sea

A witness has spoken of the moment a three-year-old boy was hit by a freak wave and swept 60ft out to sea during a family day out at a Scottish seaside town.

Toddler Eryk Cieraszewski was reportedly being filmed by his mother playing in puddles when tragedy struck at 3.30pm on Saturday along the esplanade at Kirkcaldy, Fife.

The child is believed to have tripped as a strong wave a gap rushed through a gap in the sea wall and pulled him into the water.

He was recovered from the water by RNLI coastguards but tragically died a short time later in hospital.

An unnamed witness spoke of the incident to the Daily Record: “The mum was there with her two kids. She was videoing the wee one running through puddles, getting his feet wet. They were all laughing.

"It looked like any fun family day out. She did nothing wrong. It made me remember times my mum took me to the esplanade to do the same thing.

“They were having so much fun. I went away with a big smile on my face. Then I heard the sirens and next time I looked, the coastguard and police were there. It looks as though the boy might have tripped at the same time as a wave came up and swept him away. It's so sad.”

It is understood that Eryk’s family is part of the Polish community and had only recently moved to the Kirkcaldy area.

Following the incident, mother Jadwiga Cieraszewska paid tribute to her son, said: “Eryk will be sadly missed by all the family. We will never forget him.”