A woman whose body has never been found was one of the victims of the Morecambe Bay cockle picking tragedy, an inquest was told today.

Liu Qin Ying, 37, drowned along with her husband Xu Yu Hua, 37, the first day of the inquest into the deaths of 23 people was told.

They died when they were trapped by incoming tides at Bolton-Le-Sands near Hest Bay in February this year.

The group was employed in the lucrative but shadowy cockle picking trade.

Ms Liu’s body was one of two which were never recovered, Detective Inspector Steve Brunskill told the inquest.

Her husband’s two cousins, Lin You Xing, 38, and Lin Guo Guant, 36, also died at Morecambe Bay.

Mr Brunskill told the inquest about another victim who contacted his family while he was trapped in the sea on February 5.

Guo Bing Long, who would have been 29 on Thursday, telephoned his family at 9.30pm to tell them he was trapped on a sandbank by the rapidly rising tide.

Mr Brunskill said that Mr Guo was married with a six-year-old son and a three-year-old daughter.

His possessions were found on his body and were later identified by his family. They included a metal watch, beaded necklace, black leather wallet, black and white metal cross and photographs.

Another man, Yang Tian Long, 33, called a survivor of the tragedy and asked him to "contact police as they were drowning," Mr Brunskill told the inquest.

He left China seven or eight years ago and his wife had left him before he came to the UK.

His son, 15, is still being cared for by neighbours, Mr Brunskill said.

Detective Superintendent Michael Gradwell, the senior officer in the case, said that six people were still being investigated for putting the pickers at risk in a known dangerous bay.

He said: "I have been liaising closely with the Crown Prosecution Service and I have provided them with a substantial file of evidence."

The six people are on bail until early July when the CPS is likely to make a decision on whether to bring charges.

Two people have been bailed on manslaughter charges.

Four have been bailed on serious immigration offences.

Mr Gradwell said more than 30 officers were still working on the case and inquiries were continuing in the UK, Europe and Asia.

He said the response to media coverage of the case had provided officers with lots of information.

"The inquiry team has already taken more than 1,000 witness statements and seen some 3,000 exhibits."

There are more than 100,000 documents in the incident room, many of which still required translation from Chinese to English.

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