This is the moment a mother and daughter were rescued from drowning in waist-high sinking sand as the tide washed in at a seaside resort.
CCTV footage of the incident captured a young girl playing in the sand at 5:20pm near the Three Shells Lagoon in Southend, Essex, before suddenly sinking into the ground.
Moments later, her mother rushed to her aid – only to also sink and become stuck just metres away.
The pair then shouted for help before four men from the nearby Adventure Island theme park – Lee Jones, Will Canning, Tim Sykes and Mitchel Francis – came to their rescue.
The men were able to pull both from the sand – believed to have been placed there by Southend-on-Sea City Council – with a rope.
In a Facebook post, a spokesperson for Adventure Island said: ‘Yesterday at around 5:20pm, one of our managers spotted a mother and her young daughter stranded in the Three Shells Lagoon, waist-deep and stuck in wet sand that had recently been placed there by the council, with the tide coming in.
‘He immediately alerted members of our workshop team, who quickly brought ropes to secure around them and carefully pull them to safety.
‘Drawing on their training and expertise, the team acted quickly and calmly to rescue them, while another member of the workshop team contacted the Coastguard.
A mother and daughter (pictured) became stuck in waist-high sinking sand near the Three Shells Lagoon in Southend, Essex
The pair were rescued after being pulled out of the sand by a rope pulled by four men from the nearby Adventure Island theme park, and a lorry driver
The four men (pictured) that rescued a mother and daughter trapped in the sand
‘Thankfully this happened while our team were still on site at the end of the day, allowing staff to spot the situation and step in when it mattered most.
‘A huge well done to our team who jumped straight into action and safely rescued them.
‘We hope the mother and daughter are both safe and well after the incident. If they see this post, we’d love them to get in touch with us.’
Philip Miller MBE, Executive Chairman of Stockvale Group, thanked the team for their efforts.
He said: ‘They recognised that two people were in real difficulty and worked together, with real calmness and professionalism, to bring them safely out while the Coastguard were contacted.
The lagoon is currently fenced off with signs warning visitors over the ‘deep wet stand.’
A Southend Council spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of this incident and are taking it very seriously.
‘Our engineers have already been on site to install fencing and signage around the lagoon.
‘No injuries were reported and we will keep the signage on site advising caution due to deep, wet sand until we are confident that the lagoon is safe.
‘We will consider any other urgent measures which may be necessary following the next low-tide inspection.’