Video: Woman Plucked From Rapidly Rising Water

Footage has emerged of the moment a woman was plucked alive from the sea with seconds to spare as she was cut off by the incoming tide.

A video released by the RNLI shows volunteer rescuers scrambling their inshore lifeboat from the beach at Blackpool.

The images, shot with a helmet camera, shows the craft speeding out to the highly distressed woman a short distance off shore.

After she is pulled from the water, the crew continues on towards the water's edge where she is handed over to emergency workers.

The RNLI said in a statement: "Blackpool RNLI volunteers were called out at 7.50pm on Tuesday evening after the Coastguard received a number of 999 calls about a woman who was stranded on a sandbank at Uncle Tom's Cabin.

"The casualty had been cut off by the incoming tide and had no means of getting safely back to shore.

"Both of the charity's D class lifeboats were launched and made their way to the scene.

"The tide was coming in rapidly and by the time the lifeboats arrived at Uncle Tom's Cabin the sandbank had disappeared completely and the casualty was struggling to keep her head above water.

"The stranded woman was tiring rapidly as she tried to swim to safety and was also suffering from the effects of cold and shock.

"Blackpool RNLI volunteers took the casualty on board the lifeboat and provided emergency first aid before taking her back to shore, she was then taken to hospital for a thorough check up."

Lifeboat helmsman David Warburton told the Blackpool Gazette the crew arrived just in time.

He said: "I would thank all of the members of the public and others who called when they saw her trapped.

"They have saved this woman's life by doing the right thing."

Volunteer crew member Jonathon Horrocks told the newspaper: "The lady we rescued had a very lucky escape.

"It's important to be vigilant when you are on the beach, make sure that you always have a safe route to shore and keep checking behind you to make sure that the tide is not coming in around you."