A man and a woman who were stranded on their boat on mudflats were rescued in a joint operation between firefighters and Medway Coastguard.

The pair were trapped on the mud for about an hour-and-a-half on Friday when their rib, a long inflatable boat, became marooned.

At first it was feared the pair might have to stay in the boat until 11pm, when the tide became high enough to free them.

However, Medway Coastguard were called to the scene at Port Werburgh, near Hoo, shortly before 5pm and, with the assistance of specially trained firefighters from Strood fire station and their mud-rescue boards, the pair were brought back to land by about 6.45pm.

Neither the man or the woman in the boat suffered any injury.

Richard Rodgers, deputy station officer for the Coastguard, said: “When we got the call, the tide was still going out and they could have been there until 10 or 11pm but with the help of the firefighters’ equipment the couple were freed before the tide turned.”

A spokesman for Kent Fire and Rescue Service added: “It proves how vital our mud rescue equipment is, as if we’d not had it at Strood, then the couple may have had to wait a lot longer to get back to dry land.”