A major rescue mission has been launched after ‘a number of people’ have been reported as being in difficulty in the sea off Withernsea.
Emergency crews were called to the area off the East Yorkshire coast just after 3pm on Friday afternoon.
According to reports, the response has included HM Coastguard, Yorkshire Ambulance Service, Humberside Police, and Humberside Fire and Rescue.
A rescue helicopter, air ambulance and another aircraft have also been deployed, and Withernsea’s RNLI inshore lifeboat, an all-weather lifeboat from Bridlington and Hornsea Inshore Rescue are in attendance.
A large cordon has been put in place along the seafront in a major rescue mission involving more than 100 members of the emergency services.
The incident comes amid a yellow weather warning for snow and ice on the Yorkshire coast.
Snow showers are expected overnight, with the Met Office reporting a likelihood of around one to three cm of snow, with up to eight cm possible in places.
It’s due to an arctic chill, with the Met Office expecting daytime temperatures across the UK to struggle to breach 0C (32F) and could even fall into the minus double digits over the coming days.
It comes just one day after people were not allowed to enter the sea for the annual New Year’s Day swim event due to large breaking waves.
Hornsea Inshore Rescue wrote on Facebook on Thursday: ‘Unfortunately the sea conditions were just not suitable today for us to condone anyone entering the water, with the tide still flowing and large breaking waves on the edge, we had to make the unfortunate decision not to do the dip in the sea.’
Resident Darrin Stevens told the BBC he had seen lots of emergency crews near the beach on Friday, adding: ‘It’s just blue lights, wall-to-wall from one side to the other’.
HM Coastguard confirmed reports of the incident were received at about 3:10pm.
A spokesperson told ITV News: ‘An HM Coastguard search and rescue helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft have been sent as well as Coastguard Rescue Teams from Withernsea, Hornsea and Hull.
‘The RNLI’s inshore lifeboat from Withernsea and all-weather lifeboat from Bridlington are assisting, as well as Hornsea Inshore Rescue.
‘Yorkshire Ambulance Service has been sent as well as an air ambulance. Humberside Police and Humberside Fire and Rescue are also in attendance.’
According the reports, the incident is ongoing as of 5pm this evening.
Hornsea Inshore Rescue confirmed on social media that it had deployed a casualty care crew to the scene due to ‘horrendous conditions’ in the water.
In a post shared on Facebook, it wrote: ‘Called out, unable to launch lifeboat due to horrendous conditions and three metre waves breaking on our slipway which would knock the tractor and trailer sideways off the ramp.
‘Our 4×4 vehicle [is] en route to Withernsea with casualty care crew.’
The incident comes one day after a man died after getting into difficulty whilst swimming in the sea on New Year’s Day.
The swimmer, who was in his 50s, recovered from the water after he was seen struggling at around 10.30am to the west of Brighton Palace Pier.
