Six rescued from sea

The Fowey lifeboat took part in the rescue

Six anglers are recovering in hospital after a dramatic rescue a mile off the coast of Cornwall.

They were spotted floating in the water after their 21-foot boat capsized and sank without trace.

A coastguard said they were lucky to be alive because none of them was wearing a lifejacket.

Two boats, a lifeboat and a Royal Navy helicopter, took part in the rescue operation.

'Mayday' alert

The incident started at about 1200 BST on Saturday when a vessel, "TK", reported seeing people in the water a mile out from Fowey harbour.

Coastguards called out the Fowey lifeboat and Royal Navy rescue helicopters and issued a general "Mayday" alert.

It was only the swift actions of vessels in the vicinity that saved these people's lives

Seamus McCafferty, coastguard

Another boat helped the TK haul the men from the water.

The six were then transferred to the Fowey lifeboat when it arrived on the scene.

They were transferred again to a Navy helicopter to take them to Tresliske Hospital at Truro.

Two of the men were said to be suffering hypothermia, one of them severely.

Coastguards at Brigham, Devon, who co-ordinated the rescue said the six men were without lifejackets.

If they had not been spotted in the water, they would have died, they said.

Coastguard Seams McCafferty said: "Clearly our advice to people is to wear a lifejacket at all times when on the water.

"It was only the swift actions of vessels in the vicinity that saved these people's lives."

'Very lucky'

He said coastguards would not even have known the men were in the water unless they had been spotted.

They had not sent out a Mayday.

"They are very lucky", he said.

The six, who have not been named, are believed to come from the Mevagissey area of Cornwall.