Coastguard crews rushed to help two women reported to be in difficulty on Southend seafront.

The Southend Coastguard team were launched after reports two women were in difficulty about 300m from shore.

The team met with the first informant who identified the two women potentially in difficulty. Southend RNLI had eyes on the reported incident and the hovercraft was ready for launch.

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Coastguard crews say the women had made their way back to shore and was met by them, where they ascertained the women had all the correct water clothing and foot wear for the oyster beds and knowledge of the tide times.

They had walked out to take photos of the sunset which led the incident to be a false alarm "with good intent".

A Southend Coastguard spokesman added: "We are grateful to the city of Southend and how the community are always keeping each other safe with watching out for people in the sea.

"Should you see anyone in trouble in or near the coast, don’t hesitate to call 999 and ask for the coastguard, you could save someone’s life."