HM Coastguard Southend responded to reports on Sunday at 1.39pm that a man had driven into the water by Oliver’s on the Beach Café with police, ambulance and coastguard teams immediately responding.
Members of the public are reported as entering the water to try and help the man, who had already been pulled from the vehicle by the time the coastguard arrived.
Extraction – Coastguard and police working to pull the car out of the water (Image: HM Coastguard Southend)
A HM Coastguard Southend spokesman said: “We would like to say a huge thanks to the members of the public who entered the water, at risk to themselves, to help extract the casualty from the vehicle in what was a very dynamic incident which was evolving quickly before emergency first responders could reach the scene.
“Whilst we would never encourage members of the public to put themselves at risk, when they do and there is a successful outcome, it shows the community spirit we have in our city when someone goes to help someone in need.
“As the persons involved had already left the scene we were not able to speak and thank them directly.
“The team would also like to thank Oliver’s on the Beach for allowing the casualty to initially recover in the café whilst awaiting attendance of emergency responders.”
After the incident, the coastguard worked to get the car out of the water with police, safely removing the vehicle and leaving no trace of pollutants in the water.
An East of England Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called just before 1.40pm on Sunday 5 January with reports that a vehicle had driven into the sea on the Western Esplanade in Southend.
“An ambulance, ambulance response vehicle and a mental health response vehicle were sent to the scene.
“The driver of the car, an adult man, was assessed and did not require transportation to hospital.”