Two girls had to be rescued by a lifeboat crew after getting swept out to sea on an inflatable swan in the Bristol Channel.

The two girls, aged seven and nine, were sitting on the plastic bird that was attached to a line held by their father.

But the line slipped through his fingers and in the windy conditions the inflatable craft was swept straight out to sea.

Volunteers from the  RNLI raced to the scene on the inshore lifeboat and rescued the girls from the water off Minehead, Somerset.

Volunteer lifeboat helm, Phil Sanderson, said that before the dad had time to react the wind had pushed the inflatable several yards away.

The rescue boat coming back with the inflatable swan
The rescue boat coming back with the inflatable swan
The family dialled 999 for help
The lifeboat crew were on the scene in minutes of being called

He said: "He waded into the water and tried to swim out to them but the thing was just moving too quickly and he couldn't get near it.



Phil said that by the time the lifeboats arrived the inflatable was almost half a mile offshore - and still moving rapidly seawards.
