Lifeguards 'flat out' as people flock to the beach

Porthmeor beach in St Ives can attract about 4,000 people on busy days

RNLI lifeguards have told of working "flat out" to deal with a surge of people flocking to Cornwall's beaches in recent warm weather.

The charity said lifeguards were "highly trained and skilled for dealing with busy beaches" and were "working hard across the region keeping beachgoers safe".

Seasonal supervisor Tim Whitefield, who oversees Porthmeor beach in St Ives, one of Cornwall's busiest in the school holidays, said there were up to 4,000 on the beach on a busy day.

"With the advent of the cheap wetsuits and bodyboards, people are in the water all day long," he said.

"We also have a lot of first aid work outside the water and those pressures are highlighted when it gets really busy, because we have six lifeguards here and they're flat out."

Seasonal supervisor Tim Whitefield has been lifeguarding for four decades

Zac Broomfield, in his seventh season lifeguarding at Porthmeor, said the team had to be ready for whatever the day threw at them.

"Last week, we had dislocated shoulder, and then not long after that, we had to launch the rescue watercraft to do a rescue," he said.

Another lifeguard, Reef Slack, 22, said: "We keep an eye on everyone, looking out for stuff like rip currents.

"There are so many people here, especially with the summer holidays and schools breaking up, it's quite a challenge."

Reef Slack said lifeguarding could be "quite a challenge"

Dan Millington, Porthmeor's head lifeguard, said he had to monitor up to 500 people in the sea at once.

"The last couple of years, stand-up paddleboards and kayaks are lot easier to get hold of so there's a lot more of that," he said.

"People go around the headlands and are then getting into trouble. "

Lewis Williams, an 18-year-old lifeguard in his first month of shifts, said problems could happen on the beach very quickly.

"You can't relax, you always have to be on the lookout," he said.

The RNLI deals with thousands of incidents over the summer

The RNLI said its lifeguards worked from 10:00 to 18:00 BST across 89 beaches in the south-west of England in the summer.

It reminded people to choose a lifeguarded beach and swim between the red and yellow flags.

The charity said its lifeguards came to the aid of nearly 9,000 people, saving 37, across Devon and Cornwall last year.

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