Photographs show the converted paddle steamer, housing a Miller & Carter Steakhouse, sinking into the water.

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said that "everyone was safely evacuated" from the restaurant, meaning they were not required to attend.

A spokesman said: "We were informed of the incident, but as no one was onboard there was no life risk and therefore we were not required to attend.

"The incident is being dealt with by the site owners."

A message on the restaurant's Facebook page, from the "Miller & Carter Lakeside management team", said that it would be "closed until further notice due to structural issues".

It added: "We will contact every guest as soon as possible, for safety reasons we are unable to access our restaurant to answer any phone calls.

"Management will be calling all guests with upcoming bookings. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused."

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The restaurant's website describes the two-floor venue as "floating on the edge of the lake at Lakeside Shopping Centre".

The restaurant was refurbished in October 2019, according to a post on the page.

Miller & Carter is a steakhouse chain that is part of the Mitchells and Butler group, owners of Harvester and Toby Carvery.

The chain has more than 100 restaurants across the UK and claims to serve up to one million steaks each year.