Nottingham girl, 4, killed by car on Florida beach

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An eyewitness describes the incident

A four-year-old girl from Nottingham has died after being hit by a car on a Florida beach.

Ellie Bland was on the sands at Daytona Beach in the south-eastern US state when the incident happened on Saturday.

She is believed to have been on holiday with her family. Her next of kin have been informed.

Florida Highway Patrol said it was investigating the incident but that no arrests had yet been made. Driving on Daytona Beach is not illegal.

Motorists are advised to watch for pedestrians, sunbathers and wildlife, however.

'Not unheard of'

A woman who witnessed the crash said: "I saw [Ellie] run across in front of the car, get hit by the car, the car roll over her, and everybody panicked.

"I started screaming. Screaming at the lady and then I guess somebody on the beach told her to drive away and she drove off a little bit.

"Everybody freaked out. They thought she was about to leave."

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We can confirm the death of a British national in Florida on 20 March.

"The next of kin have been informed and we are providing them with assistance."

A Florida Highway Patrol spokeswoman said it was not unheard of for people to be injured by cars on the sands.