Swimmers rescued after attempting to swim to tower

The two swimmers were guided back to shore by a rescue swimmer

Two young swimmers had be rescued from Douglas Bay after attempting to swim to the Tower of Refuge.

Douglas Coastguard said the pair were spotted "clinging to the furthest out day marker" buoy at about 17:50 BST on Wednesday.

Lifeboats and a helicopter were put on standby and the Ben-my-Chree was held on its approach to the harbour while a rescue swimmer guided the swimmers back to shore.

Urging parents to explain the dangers of attempting to swim out to the tower to their children, a coastguard spokesman said the incident "could of been a tragedy".

Dangers

On arrival, a rescue swimmer entered the water immediately to swim the 490ft (150m) to the pair to "secure and reassure" them, the spokesman said.

The lifeboats and helicopter remained on standby until the rescue swimmer was able to guide the young swimmers back to the shore.

The pair were then "checked over and handed to the care of their parents who were advised on the dangers of what they had done", the spokesman said.

The parents were also advised to observe the young people over the following day in case of secondary drowning, which is when complications occur after water gets into the lungs.

The coastguard said: "Luckily this incident had a successful outcome but it could have been a tragedy."

"We would advise all parents to make their children aware of the dangers of trying to swim to the Tower of Refuge," he added.

Last week, three people had to be guided back from the Douglas Bay landmark by coastguard teams who helped them to wade through the sea to the shore.

Why not follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and Twitter? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]