Three boys had to be rescued by lifeboat after becoming stranded on a disused barge.

The youngsters, two brothers aged 14 and 12 and a friend aged 14, had cycled out to the barge on Hoo Creek.

But the trio were left stranded when the tide came in.

Medway Coastguard were soon alerted by a concerned boat owner who noticed their plight.

Officers from Medway Coastguard called Sheerness Inshore Lifeboat to pick up the boys as the barge was about 165 yards from the shore.

One of the boys had lost a shoe trying to wade back. They are thought to live locally.

Richard Rodgers, deputy station officer from Medway Coastguard, said: “They were not looking out at the tide and it came in and separated them from the shore.

“If they had been out there much longer it could have been worse. It was lucky we did get to them as a couple of them had been messing about in the water and were getting cold.

“When that happens, hypothermia can set in very quickly. As it was, they only got a severe telling-off from one of their mothers.

“We would advise the public to avoid playing in the river as it can still be very dangerous, although it may not look it.

"There is often metal, for example, under the water that can cause serious injury.

“Boats, too, are still dangerous, even if they may be abandoned.”

The incident happened at about 2.30pm on Friday and the rescue operation took about two hours to complete.

The boys suffered no injuries.