Men rescued after inflatable duck drifts offshore
Matthew Rowe/RNLIThree people on a giant inflatable duck were rescued after it drifted out to sea on Tuesday.
Eyewitnesses said three men took the duck, nicknamed Quackers, into the sea at Westward Ho! beach, in Devon.
They said despite the efforts of a friend of the men in an inflatable kayak, the duck was blown about 200m (650ft) away from the shore.
A paddleboarder managed to bring the duck closer to the shore and the men swam to the safety of the beach.
The inflatable was immediately blown back out to sea.
The Appledore RNLI inshore lifeboat arrived as the men made it back to shore safely, with crew member Del Elsemore swimming in to check on them.
Mr Elsemore said: "The quick thinking of this member of the public with a paddleboard prevented a nasty situation turning much worse. He was the real lifesaver of the day."
The RNLI urged people never to take an inflatable toy into the sea as "with the strong tides and offshore breezes of the Bristol Channel... there is no way to control these and they get pulled out from shore within seconds".
Follow BBC News South West on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].