Surge surfer recalls rescue drama

Ron Bowles took this photo of the coastguard rescue operation

A surfer who was hauled up a cliff face after being beaten by strong waves during a North Sea tidal surge has spoken of his dramatic rescue.

Dan Hill, 33, of Westgate-on-Sea, Kent, was one of three surfers left trapped on rocks at Joss Bay, Broadstairs.

He and another man were winched to safety by rescuers on Friday morning while a third made it through the rough waters to a nearby beach.

"I knew the tide was dropping but we just had to sit it out," Mr Hill said.

He became trapped on a ledge with a man from London during force six winds.

"The guy that was next to me, he was pretty cold," he said.

"We were just sat there and he was a bit panicky and nervous, so I calmed him down."

Dan Hill is a regular surfer at Joss Bay in Broadstairs

A Dover Coastguard spokesman said on Friday that the surfers had not necessarily been "irresponsible" for going out in the stormy conditions.

But he added: "No matter how good these people are, they still would have found the conditions more severe than they were expecting."

And Mr Hill reflected: "I just got caught out by the rip and I had to go with it and try to save myself."

But despite the drama, he was back surfing at Joss Bay on Saturday and pledging to become a regular donor to the coastguard.

Rescuer Keith Silcock said: "We're trained to carry out cliff rescues and it obviously comes naturally because you've been doing it for so long.

"The only difference was that the tide was so high there was a possibility of the surfers being swept away further along the coast, and that could have created a larger problem."

There were three flood warnings and five flood watches as the North Sea surge made its way past the Kent coast on Friday morning.

The Environment Agency said storm defences prevented any major incidents, although there was localised flooding in places like Sandwich, Broadstairs and Deal.