A grandfather died while saving his nine-year-old granddaughter after a sudden change in sea conditions pushed his family members into deep water at a beach in Cornwall, UK.Phil Crowe, 68, suffered cardiac arrest in the sea at Tregirls Beach near Padstow during Bank Holiday Monday after helping to rescue his granddaughter Sia Briscoe and wife Tina Crowe.According to family members, the three were in the water when conditions changed unexpectedly and they started drifting away from the shore.Tina Crowe told the Daily Mail that the family were enjoying the waves when suddenly they found themselves unable to touch the sea floor.“We were bouncing with the waves, but when we landed, suddenly we couldn’t hit the floor,” he said. “It was deeper and pulling us out.”She said her husband focused on helping get his granddaughter to safety as the situation worsened.“He was pushing her legs and just yelling, ‘Swim, swim, swim,'” she recalled. “He pushed her to safety, but doing so meant he couldn’t get back on his own.”Sia was eventually brought to shore by members of the public, while Tina was rescued by a passing boat and later examined by a paramedic. Family members said about 15 people joined efforts to help those trapped in the water.Mr Crowe, a retired mason and lifelong Padstow resident, was pronounced dead at the scene despite the response of emergency services.His daughter Mel Thomas said the family views his final actions as a sacrifice.“He died a hero and wouldn’t have had it any other way,” he said. “He saved his granddaughter’s life. She’s safe because of what he did.”Thomas said his father loved his five grandchildren very much and was always fiercely protective of them.The family said they had been visiting the same beach for decades and described the incident as a devastating blow.The coastguard, Rock RNLI lifeboat crews and Cornwall Air Ambulance attended the emergency.Devon and Cornwall Police said officers were called at around 3.50pm to reports of a man in cardiac arrest at sea.“Emergency services and the RNLI attended the scene but sadly the 60-year-old local man was pronounced dead at the scene,” a police spokesperson was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.Police said the death was not being treated as suspicious and a file would be prepared for investigation.Mr Crowe’s death occurred during the bank holiday period, which saw large numbers of people visit beaches and open water swimming spots across the UK amid unusually warm weather.