Two girls were rescued off the north Norfolk coast today after becoming stranded by the incoming tide.

Coastguards issued a warning about the dangers of exploring the wreck on the sands at Brancaster following the rescue.

The RNLI Hunstanton Hovercraft and Wells and Hunstanton coastguard teams were alerted by the Humber Coastguard after receiving multiple reports of people attempting to swim ashore as the tide was flooding the sands.

Two girls had swam across to the Scolt head island and one of them had a severely sprained her ankle.

The crew of the hovercraft landed them on the beach at Brancaster Golf Club into the care of the local coastguard and a paramedic.

The injured girl was taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital at Kings Lynn. The girls came from the Stamford area and are believed to be on holiday.

A spokesman for Hunstanton RNLI said: 'However tempting it is to go out on to the sands, parents should know were their children are exploring, and be aware of the dangers when the tide starts to flow in. This was a serious incident, with a happy ending.'