'Someone said is it the Spanish flag?' - RNLI

The RNLI urged beachgoers to learn the meaning of safety flags to prevent accidents.

Three people have died on the Lincolnshire coast in the last three months in separate incidents at Skegness, Ingoldmells and Anderby Creek.

RNLI Senior lifeguard Lois Kemp, 26, said it was "worrying" that some people did not know the meanings of the different flags.

"I've had some people come and ask me if it's the Spanish flag," she said, referring to the red and yellow flag which marks a designated swimming area monitored by lifeguards.

"It's generally the safest area you can swim," she said.

"It's also the area we can respond to you the quickest."

Ms Kemp said the RNLI in Skegness had been raising awareness about beach safety by visiting local schools.

"The most important thing we do is prevention," she said.

"You obviously want to stop any bad incident before it happens."

On 25 May, Lincolnshire police said a 60-year-old man died after attempting to help two children who appeared to be in distress in the sea at Ingoldmells.

In a separate incident at the end of June, a body was found by emergency crews searching for a teenage boy who had been reported missing at Anderby Creek.

At the start of July, the family of 29-year-old Aaron Keightley paid tribute to him after he died when getting into difficulty in the sea off Skegness.

Ms Kemp said if people do find themselves in trouble in the water they should "float to live".

"Make a star float on your back, head up to the sky, shout for help and wait for assistance," she said.

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