A video has been released of the RNLI rescuing of seven kayakers who became trapped at the foot of the highest sea cliffs on England

Theey were rescued in a combined operation by Minehead and Ilfracombe RNLI lifeboats on Sunday.

Sunday afternoon’s three-hour drama started after the seven had been kayaking around Foreland Point, near Lynmouth.

As the weather deteriorated and the sea conditions worsened they were swept onto a boulder-strewn shore by wind and a rising tide and ended up isolated into two groups.

They used a mobile phone to call for help and volunteer lifeboat crews from Minehead and Ilfracombe launched at around 3.30.

Minehead’s Atlantic-85 lifeboat was first on scene and first aider Rajinder Webber was sent into the beach through heavy surf to assess the condition of one woman with an ankle injury.

Two further first aiders from Ilfracombe’s D-class lifeboat crew also swam ashore to help. Eventually Ilfracombe’s D class crew, with Minehead crew member Paul Hobbs aboard to help, veered into the beach five times on the end of its anchor line to take off the casualties and their kayaks while the second group was recovered by Ilfracombe’s all-weather lifeboat.

All the kayakers were landed at Lynmouth where the woman with the ankle injury was transferred to an ambulance for treatment at North Devon District Hospital.

Minehead lifeboat helmsman Phil Sanderson said the incident could not have happened at a worse location.

“The two groups were in a pretty inaccessible situation, really in among the rocks with the cliffs above them and sea conditions worsening all the time,” he said.

“If we hadn’t been able to take them off the outcome could have been very different indeed. Getting them and all their gear off took quite some time but the operation proved just what a brilliant boat the D class is in situations like this.”