A beach lifeguard has spoken out about the dangers of rip currents after helping to save the lives of two swimmers.

Six people were seen in difficulty in a rip current, with two struggling to stay afloat.

The group had entered the sea away from a lifeguard-patrolled area at Tregantle in Whitsand Bay. 

RNLI lifeguards spotted the swimmers through their binoculars and saw they were struggling to get back to shore. 

Beau Gillett and Mark Oliver sped towards the scene in an inshore rescue boat and found one person being held above the water by two of his friends. They picked up this swimmer and took him back to the beach.

Then they returned to a female casualty who was struggling to stay afloat and took her safely to the shore. The remaining four swimmers were assisted to swim back to the beach in the incident which took place earlier this month. 

Lifeguard supervisor Beau said: “All six of these casualties were extremely grateful following their rescue, realising the severity of the situation and the importance of swimming between the red and yellow flags. Rip currents are a major cause of accidental drowning on beaches and are particularly common along Tregantle beach. 

“I strongly advise people to choose a lifeguarded beach and always swim between the red and yellow flags, which have been marked based on where is safer to swim in the current conditions. This also helps the lifeguards spot you more easily, should something go wrong.”