Dramatic moment ice cream van is whipped out to sea - in pictures
The van appeared to be dragged out to sea by rough waves but was eventually tugged to dry land after the tide went out
An ice cream van has been pulled from the sea in Cornwall after it was washed out by the tide. The van was captured on video at Harlyn Beach, near Newquay, and appeared to be dragged out by rough waves at high tide yesterday afternoon (Sunday, July 7).
Photos taken at the scene showed the van filling with seawater as waves break over the vehicle. Further footage seen by CornwallLive shows a handful of people rushing into the sea to try and prevent the van from being swept out completely. Some do-gooders were waist-deep in the water in a bid to save the van.
A vehicle was called to try and tow the van back to shore but was eventually left to the mercy of the tide and abandoned, resulting in the vehicle being thrashed against rocks. Later photos show a larger vehicle bringing the ice cream van to shore after the tide went out, now able to tow the vehicle without having to battle the sea.
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A police officer and what appears to be a firefighter were photographed at the scene as the vehicle was pulled to dry land. It is not believed that anyone was injured during the attempted rescue.
One eyewitness reported that the driver of the van left the scene, leaving their van to be swept out to sea. The footage from the beach shows the ice cream van being thrown around the bay, with huge waves flooding the inside of the van and crashing over the freezers inside.
A spokesperson for HM Coastguard said the van owner arranged for a recovery of the vehicle at around 9.45, when the tide was low enough for recovery. They said in a statement: "Just before 5 yesterday afternoon (07 July) HM Coastguard was made aware of an ice cream van that was caught by the tide at Harlyn Bay, Cornwall.
"Padstow Coastguard Rescue Team and RNLI Lifeguards were sent to ensure the safety of those involved. The driver was safe and well and not in the vehicle. The owner arranged a recovery vehicle which recovered the van at around 9:45pm when tide receded enough for it to be safe to do so. Coastguard rescue officers left once the vehicle was recovered and in a safe location."
CornwallLive has contacted the RNLI and Devon and Cornwall Police for more information.
The van appeared to be dragged out to sea by strong waves at Harlyn Beach, near Newquay
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An ice cream van which was washed out to sea in Cornwall has been returned to dry land
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The van was eventually returned to dry land
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