Family caught in rip tide saved in beach rescue

The beach at Sea Palling in Norfolk attracts thousands of visitors in the peak summer months

Members of a family have been rescued from the sea after getting caught in a rip tide, a lifeboat service has said.

One person was pulled from the water at Sea Palling in Norfolk by an RNLI rescue boat, a second by the village's independent lifeboat, while a third person - also spotted in trouble - made it safely to shore.

Emergency services were called to the beach, at about 10:30 BST, the Coastguard said.

"Two patients were transported by road to James Paget University Hospital for further care," said an East of England Ambulance Service spokesman.

Mark Skerrett, from Sea Palling Independent Lifeboat, said it the incident was one of three his crews had attended on Sunday

"We were called just after 10:50 with reports of people in difficulty in water at Sea Palling beach.

"Two ambulances, an ambulance officer vehicle and the East Anglian Air Ambulance were sent to the scene."

East Anglian Air Ambulance confirmed it was called, but was stood down.

Bacton and Cromer Coastguard rescue teams also attended the scene, alongside Sea Palling Independent Lifeboat and Sea Palling RNLI lifeguards, according to the Coastguard.

Mark Skerrett, chairman of Sea Palling Independent Lifeboat, said his crew had saved a man believed to be in his 30s.

"They were a family of swimmers caught in the rip tide," he said.

"We were preparing to take the boat down to Hemsby Lifeboat Day when we were paged by the Humber Coastguard to attend three people in the water.

"We launched the small boat straight away - the lifeguard was already there and took one person in and we took the other."

Sea Palling's lifeboat was one of the emergency services called to help those trapped in the sea

Mr Skerrett warned of the risks of rip tides around high tide in the area, caused by the rock reefs installed to prevent flooding.

Rip tides, or rip currents, are powerful, narrow channels of fast-moving water that can quickly drag people out to deeper water.

"It is a beautiful beach and safe most of the time, but the rip tides along our coast are one of the dangers," said Mr Skerrett.

"People need how to spot what they look like and if caught in one, should always just float - don't try to swim."

A father drowned at the beach in 2016, while a teenage girl had to be resuscitated by lifeguards in 2018.

What to do in a rip tide

The advice from the RNLI if you are caught in a rip current is:

• Don't try to swim against it as you will quickly get exhausted

• If you can stand, wade - don't swim

• Swim parallel to the shore until free of the rip and then head for shore

• Always raise your hand and shout for help