As the rising tide waters swirled around him in Morecambe Bay on the night of February 5, 2004, Guo Bin Long realised he was in big trouble and used his mobile phone to call a friend on shore for help. In the moments before he drowned, Guo, a Chinese cockle picker and illegal immigrant, cried out in vain for his mother and father.
Another cockler, Li Hua, was luckier. He went back into the water to try to rescue his friend. But before Mr Li could find him, he was engulfed by the tides and was only rescued at the last minute.
These are two of the stories jurors heard this week as the trial began of five people charged over the deaths of 21 Chinese illegal immigrant in Britain. Jurors also watched dramatic footage of the rescue attempts that night and boarded a hovercraft to survey Morecambe Bay, a scenic coastal area in England 320km northwest of London.
The 21 victims, aged 18 to 45, died when they were caught by the bay's rapid tides as they were harvesting cockles.
Their deaths attracted worldwide attention to the plight of Chinese illegal immigrants in Britain, who often work in virtual slavery. The tragedy followed the deaths of 58 Chinese illegal immigrants at Dover in 2000 who were being smuggled into Britain in an unventilated truck from Zeebrugge, Belgium.
The alleged gang master, Lin Liang Ren, 29, faces 21 counts of manslaughter in the Preston Crown Court in Lancashire, as well as perverting the course of justice and conspiracy to facilitate illegal immigration. Zhao Xiao Qing, 20, Lin's girlfriend, is charged with facilitation and perverting justice, while Lin Mu Yong, 31, Lin Liang Ren's cousin, is also charged with facilitation.