Three teenage boys were plucked to safety from the sea.
The youngsters had been swimming near groynes off the beach at Walton.
But winds gusted up to force seven and the three got into difficulty.
One of the teenagers was forced to cling on to a groyne as the waves pounded him and his two friends.
The group was spotted in trouble by a member of Walton's lifeboat crew.
He was among the people who raised the alarm.
Beach patrolmen and coastguards went to rescue the boys, who were helped ashore at about 2pm yesterday.
All three had to be treated for cuts and bruises, and one of them was taken for treatment at Clacton Hospital.
Published Friday August 20, 2004
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