George Thorpein Budleigh Salterton
People in a coastal town said they remain in shock a fortnight after two men went missing at sea during a Christmas Day swim.
Residents of Budleigh Salterton in Devon said it was all some people had spoken about and there had been a sense of the community rallying together to support each other.
The two men – one of whom has been named as local antique shop owner Matthew Upham – are still missing despite a large scale search operation on Christmas Day.
Sarah Giles, a local sea swimmer, said there was an “immense feeling of shock” which had “struck the heart of the community”.
Giles said she goes sea swimming on most days but the Christmas Day incident had made some regular swimmers hesitant.
“A lot of swimmers were not keen on going back in for a few days and some people didn’t want swimmers go back in out of respect.”
She said there were “mixed feelings” and added “everyone grieves and feels shock differently”.
She said people had rallied together with many asking if things could have been different.
“It’s just so, so sad that it’s happened at an event which should have been silly, happy and Christmassy,” Giles said.
Fellow sea swimmer Kate Gardner said the impact of the incident had felt greater because it happened on Christmas Day.
She said: “It’s a really close-knit town and the beach and the sea is a focus.
“I think it’s very important everybody knows it’s a very, very unusual thing to happen and everyone is looking out for each other all the time.”
Reverend Martin Jacques, vicar of St Peter’s Church in the town, said being brought face-to-face with mortality would always have an impact on people, especially when it involved “tragic circumstances”.
Jacques added: “It eats away at you and makes you realise just how life hangs by a thread.
“Any one of us today could go outside and be knocked down by the proverbial bus.”
Tributes have continued to be paid to both missing men, with flowers placed left along the edge of the beach.
Floral tributes have also appeared outside the antiques shop run by Upham.
Kerry Wright, owner of Saveur restaurant in Exmouth, where Upham had been a regular customer, described him as a “quirky, kind and nice man”.
She said: “I was doom-scrolling on social media on Boxing Day when I saw something saying it was Matthew.
“I ran downstairs to tell my husband ‘it’s Matthew’ and I was actually very tearful because it was quite shocking.
“You can’t think that something as innocent as that could turn into a tragedy with two men lost, which is horrible.”
Councillor Penny Lewis, Budleigh Salterton’s mayor, said what happened on Christmas Day had a “profound impact” on the town.
“At the same time, the compassion and kindness shown across the community in recent weeks has been moving.
“People have come together to support one another in every possible way and that sense of togetherness reflects the true spirit of the town.”
Devon and Cornwall Police has asked anyone with information about the incident to contact them.
