Man arrested after making threats to kill following large-scale search in Lowestoft

Several emergency services helped rescue a male person from the sea near Lowestoft last night. Picture by UK Coastguard. (Image: Archant)

Police were called about 9.15pm Sunday (March 12) by a woman who reported that she had been threatened by a man, who was known to her, in the Lowestoft area.

The man, 46, had left the premises in the Whapload Road area of Lowestoft and officers were told that he may also try to harm himself.

Police began a search to locate the man and about 11.35pm officers spotted a man on the beach, in the Corton Road area of north Lowestoft, walking into the water before swimming out to sea.

Officers alerted the coastguard and this prompted a large-scale call-out with two coastguard teams, three police units, two Royal National Lifeboat Institution crews and ambulance staff

Spot north of Tramps Alley, Corton where the UK coastguard carried out the rescue last night. Picture: Mick Howes (Image: Mick Howes)

Coastguard officers from Lowestoft rescued the man, whom they said had been in the sea for about ten minutes.

A spokesman for the Lowestoft and Southwold branches of the coastguard said: 'My team carried out an exceptional rescue in difficult conditions.

'The success is down to the fantastic training supplied by HM Coastguard to its officers for such situations like this.'

Due to the inaccessible location of the incident, the paramedics from East of England Ambulance Service were transported along the beach in coastguard vehicles to treat the man, who had injuries to his wrists.

He was taken to James Paget University Hospital in Gorleston and is now in police custody where he will be interviewed by police officers.

Both coastguard officers who rescued the man from the sea were checked by the paramedics and were declared fit and well.

In total seven coastguard officers from the Lowestoft and Southwold rescue teams were involved in the rescue.

The other units on the scene were: Suffolk Police Dog Unit, Suffolk Police (Lowestoft), Norfolk Police Firearms Units, an ambulance crew and a rapid response vehicle from the East of England Ambulance, RNLI Gorleston ILB, RNLI Lowestoft Lifeboat.

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