People urged to avoid swimming in Devon’s coast after two men go missing

People in areas battered by strong winds and rough seas have been told to stay away from the water as two men remain missing.

Christmas Day in East Devon had a tragic ending after two swimmers went missing at Budleigh Salterton yesterday morning.

The emergency services scrambled to the beach at about 10.25am after concern for people in the water.

Several people were safely helped out of the waves and taken to the hospital as a precaution. But two men, aged in their 40s and 60s, were not located despite extensive searches by the coastguard and RNLI.

The search and rescue operations have now concluded and the men remain missing. Their families have been informed, Devon and Cornwall Police said.

A stretch of the South West, including Devon and Cornwall, was under a yellow Met Office weather warning for wind until midnight, with gusts predicted to reach up to 65mph on exposed coasts and hills.

While no further warnings have been issued for today, police urged people not to swim in the sea on Boxing Day.

Detective Superintendent Hayley Costar from the force said: ‘Today, emergency services have been responding to a truly tragic incident in Budleigh Salterton.

‘Our thoughts remain firmly with the families and friends of the two men who are currently missing and to all who may have witnessed and be impacted by the incident.

‘The local community will have seen a significant amount of emergency services in the area throughout the day as extensive enquiries have been ongoing.

‘As dark falls, a number of these searches have been stood down, with some police enquiries on land continuing this evening.

‘There have been weather warnings in place this week and a number of official and unofficial swims have already been cancelled.

‘While there are no official warnings in place for tomorrow, we urge anyone with plans to go swimming in the sea on Boxing Day not to.’

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