The Coastguard is warning people to be more aware of tidal movements after four winkle pickers became stranded on rocks in Sunderland last night. The group – consisting of three young men and a woman – were rescued after a concerned passer-by contacted the Coastguard, who, together with the inshore lifeboat, arrived on the scene in minutes. None of the stranded party were harmed by the incident.

The warning comes after local rescue teams reported that they have been scrambled several times in the last couple of weeks to rescue people who have been cut off from the shore by the incoming tide. On June 1, two 15-year-old boys were rescued by the inshore lifeboat after becoming trapped on rocks in Whitburn.