Man, 42, dies after falling off paddle board and getting tangled in moorings while on staycation in Cornwall
- 42-year-old man fell into the water off the sailing club at Rock beach yesterday
- The male is believed to be on staycation from his home in Chelmsford, Essex
- He was one of two men who came off their boards while paddle-boarding
A holidaymaker has died after falling from a paddle board in strong tides and becoming entangled in moorings while on a staycation in Cornwall.
The 42-year-old man fell into the water off the sailing club at Rock Beach at around 1.30pm yesterday.
The male, who was believed to have been visiting the area from his home in Chelmsford, Essex, was pronounced dead at the scene.
He was one of two men who came off their boards while on the Camel Estuary, which was quickly filling up with water.
The 42-year-old man fell into the water off the sailing club at Rock beach at around 1.30pm yesterday (pictured today)
He was one of two men who came off their boards while paddle-boarding on the Camel Estuary
A local boatman managed to free the entrapped man from the moorings and haul him into his vessel.
But this boatman also encountered problems and was forced to fire a red mayday flare to signal for help.
A major rescue operation was launched involving the Padstow Harbour boat, Rock RNLI and Polzeath Coastguard teams.
James Instance, from Falmouth Coastguard, said: ‘A couple of people had been out on paddle boards on the Camel Estuary with a flooding tide.
‘With the water moving quite quickly, they had come off the boards and then got tangled in moorings in the area.
The moorings in the Camel Estuary in Cornwall
‘That had caused a problem when they were unable to free themselves.’
Mr Instance said that despite a major rescue operation involving paramedics, the lifeboat crew and others, one of the males was declared dead at the scene.
As part of the rescue a local boat went in and managed to free him and recovered him into his vessel.
‘They then tried to bring him to shore, but then got into a little bit of trouble and fired a red flare,’ he added.
TV chef Gordon Ramsay purchased a 1920s property for £4.4million in Rock village 2015.
Many boats are fastened to moorings buoys off Rock Beach, which are in turn chained to the sea bed.
Paddle-boarding has ballooned in popularity in recent years and one of the fastest-growing water sports.