Emergency services have rescued a man who became trapped by rocks in the sea off the Norfolk coast.
The man’s leg became stuck under rocks near the East Promenade in Sheringham as the tide was coming in.
Fire officers cut through the rock to rescue him after he had spent nearly four hours in the sea, water rising up to his neck.
Coastguards, Norfolk police, Norfolk fire and rescue and the East of England ambulance service were all at the scene. A rescue team helped to reassure the man and held his head above the water. He was also given a life-jacket and breathing apparatus.
Zach Pedley from HM Coastguard said it was a “very frightening experience” for the man.
A retired Sheringham Coastguard station manager Stuart Facey told the North Norfolk News he was walking his dog in the area when the Coastguard arrived.
He said: “It was high tide and water was coming over him so it was a very scary situation.”
Facey warned people to stay away from the rocks and added: “The problem is that even if you are able to move a rock to free someone who is stuck, another can fall into its place; it can be a life or death situation.”
A 999 call came in just after 5.30pm alerting the emergency services to the incident. The Coastguard then posted on Twitter that he was freed at 9.16pm.
Sam Stockdale, senior maritime operations officer from HM Coastguard, said: “We often talk about how training matters between the various frontline responders and today has shown just why it does. Everyone worked together on scene to look after the man and also to free him as soon as was practically possible.”
The man was cared for by the East of England ambulance service after being freed.
