Body found in search for man who fell from ship off Kent coast

Operation took place in ‘very rough seas and challenging conditions’, authorities say

A man was reported missing off Margate Harbour (PA)

A body has been found following reports that a man had fallen off a boat around the Kent coast, according to HM Coastguard.

"At around 1pm, after many hours of searching, a body was sadly found in the water by the RNLI Margate lifeboat and has been brought to shore," a spokesperson said.

They said the search took place in "very rough seas and challenging conditions", as Storm Dennis moved in on the UK.

Authorities were alerted that a man had potentially fallen overboard near Margate at around 5.40am on Saturday.

A Royal Navy vessel, a police boat and a helicopter where dispatched to try and locate the missing person.

The distress call is believed to have come from B Gas Margrethe, a Maltese tanker that had been anchored off the coast of Margate.

The search operation was carried out as the UK braced for a new storm this weekend, which hit the first parts of the country around midday.

The Met Office has issued weather warnings over strong winds and heavy rain forecast for Storm Dennis.

Areas of the country battered by Storm Ciara last week are threatened with fresh bouts of flooding, forecasters have warned.

Members of the British Army have been sent to help locals deal with the bad weather in West Yorkshire, one of the areas at risk of more floods.

Hundreds of UK flights have been cancelled over the fresh storm, with passengers at Gatwick being the worst affected.

Forecasters have predicted winds could reach 70mph along coastlines in the UK's second blustery weekend in a row.

Thousands of homes were left without power and 90mph winds were recorded around the country during the previous bout of bad weather.

Additional reporting by Press Association