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Man's spinal injury after wing foil accident

BBC A beach scene featuring an RNLI lifeguard vehicle parked on wet sand with a yellow rescue board leaning against its front. A person in a red jacket stands near the back of the vehicle, facing the sea. In the background, beachgoers are visible in the water and on the sand, along with a kite surfer. Hills and buildings can be seen in the distance. BBC
The RNLI said a man was spotted waving for help in windy conditions

Emergency services have described how they worked together in a "complex life-saving operation" where a man suffered suspected spinal injuries while wing foiling.

The RNLI said two lifeguards responded to the emergency at Bantham beach just before 11:00 BST on Sunday after spotting a man waving for help in windy conditions more than 200m (656ft) from shore.

Once they arrived on scene, the pair found he had had an accident with his board and he was taken back to shore on the rescue watercraft.

Neighbouring lifeguard beach Sedgewell Cove coordinated a response from the HM Coastguard and the air ambulance arrived to take the man to the hospital.

'True professionals'

Luke Lane-Prokopiou, Seasonal Lifeguard Supervisor, said it was "a fantastic show of multi-agency" teams "working in harmony".

He said: "Without the initial actions of RNLI Lifeguards this could have been a very different outcome.

"We could not be prouder of how our RNLI Lifeguards acted, they were true professionals in a complex lifesaving operation."

The service said lifeguards would be on Bantham beach throughout the summer between 10:00 and 18:00 BST.

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