Eva, 14, was seen 'grinding her teeth' on the beach - within minutes, she was in a coma

Eva Tucker had been playing happily on the beach with her family when her mum realised her daughter was having a seizure. Her teeth were grinding and suddenly, her head became stiff.

The 14-year-old was airlifted to a hospital in Spain, where she spent the next three weeks in a coma before being transferred home and treated at Royal Manchester Children's Hospital.

It's thought she suffered over 100 seizures.

Tragically for her family, it wasn't the first time they'd witnessed such a traumatic event. Eva suffered her first seizure when she was just five and a half months old.

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She was referred to Great Ormond Street Hospital for tests, which eventually revealed she has GEFS+ - genetic epilepsy with febrile seizures - a rare syndrome that is often associated with a high temperature.

Since then, her father, Mark Tucker, who lives in Bolton, says his daughter's condition has resulted in her ending up in intensive care three times - with the most recent seizure leaving her stuck in hospital for months.

He is calling for greater awareness and research surrounding epilepsy, which is thought to affect around one in every 100 people, with 600,000 people living with the condition in the UK.

"When Eva was five and a half months she had her first seizure but we had no idea what it was," Mark said, speaking to the Manchester Evening News.

"Her mum was feeding her in her high chair and suddenly it just started. Then she was getting them every six weeks or so. She'd often get ear infections, and then the seizures would follow.

"She has had some really awful times. We were