Spirit of West Norfolk called to the Vena, but sightseers safe

Visitors to the Norfolk coast are being warned to watch the tides if they are planning on visiting a wreck off Brancaster.

Hunstanton lifeboat was called at 11.52am on Wednesday after eight people were on the wreck sands and in danger of being cut off by the tide.

As the Spirit of West Norfolk was about to hit the water, Great Yarmouth coastguard reported the people were off the sands and safe on the beach so the crew was stood down.

The wreck of the Vena, a second world war relic, is on the sands to be used as a target ship. It was towed from Yarmouth where it was to have been used as a block ship in the event of invasion.

But according to the Hunstanton lifeboat crew it is drawing visitors onto the sands to have a closer look.

'Visitors must be aware of the tide times, as when the tide turns it comes in round the sands from both ways, and the channel that they paddled through becomes very deep very quickly, before completely covering the sands,' said Geoff Needham, Hunstanton lifeboat spokesman.