NEWQUAY emergency services are to feature in a popular television series on Thursday (September 11).

Volunteer crew from Newquay RNLI lifeboat Station and RNLI lifeguards from Watergate Bay will appear on the BBC’s documentary series Saving Lives at Sea at 8pm when their rescue of six children cut off by the tide at Watergate Bay in June 2024.

RNLI lifeguards Sam Code and Olly Malkin were alerted by the group's parents that their children had gone missing. Sam quickly launched the Rescue Water Craft (RWC), with Olly on the recovery sled as the high tide was imminent.

Sam and Olly checked along the south end of the beach where the children were suspected to be; an area which is notorious for strong rip currents. The children were nowhere to be seen.

The possibility that the children may have been washed out to sea by the strong currents in the rising tide became more and more probable as the search went on. The lifeguards phoned the Coastguard for assistance, who tasked the Newquay RNLI lifeboat.

The lifeguards finally located the group of children as the lifeboat was on its way, and together the lifeguards and volunteer lifeboat crew recovered all six casualties and brought them back to safety.

RNLI lead lifeguard supervisor for Newquay, Lewis Timson, said: ‘We are excited to see our Newquay lifeguards featuring on Saving Lives at Sea for the second time this season, which is another excellent demonstration of teamwork between our lifeguards and lifeboat crews.

“Rescues where we see people caught out by rising tides are high-pressure scenarios, and making quick decisions can be a matter of life or death. We are so proud of Sam and Olly for their intuitive thinking.”

The tenth series of Saving Lives at Sea shares real RNLI rescues from around the UK and Ireland, told through the real accounts of RNLI lifeguards and volunteer lifeboat crews. From dramatic rescues far out at sea to everyday incidents on the coast, the programme offers unique insight into the lifesaving work of the charity.