Southend on sea’s RNLI volunteer lifeboat crew launched from the pier at 5pm yesterday to reports from Thames Coastguard of a woman on a 3 metre boat suffering head injuries, just offshore at Leigh Old Town.

The lifeboat crew made best speed to the location, finding on arrival that the woman was now safely ashore and being attended to by paramedics.

With Southend Coastguard also on scene, happy to deal with the boat, and no further assistance required from Southend inshore lifeboat, they moved out of the area due to the falling tide and returned to station.