A man is fighting for his life after being rescued from the sea by RNLI lifeguards.

It is believed he had been fishing from a boat with a second man when it sank off Leysdown yesterday.

Lifeguard Jordan Box plunged into the water and paddled 300 metres on his surfboard to reach the man who was unconscious and not breathing.

Mr Box dragged the man back to the beach and helped perform CPR on him with a paramedic.

Their fast reactions helped save the man’s life. He was later taken to a hospital in London.

Witness Carol King, 67, who keeps the nearby public toilets clean, said: “That young lifeguard deserves a medal. It was an incredible rescue.

"Everyone on the seawall who had been watching applauded when he brought the man ashore.

“I heard the lifeguard had been looking through binoculars when he saw two men in the water.

“One was quite near the beach but the other seemed like he was miles out.

"The lifeguard brought him back on his surfboard and then performed CPR. A paramedic ran to help him.

“I heard the men had been fishing on a boat. We are lucky to have the lifeguards here. The man would not have made it without them. He was blue when he reached the beach.”

Property manager Chris Francis, who lives in a house overlooking the beach, said: “I heard sirens and saw blue lights.

"The first to arrive was the air ambulance support team although the air ambulance wasn’t needed.

“The lifeguards were running about and then two more ambulances arrived and then the police.

"Then a lifeboat came in close. There was a lot of activity. I saw the guy brought up on a stretcher. It looked like he was on a drip. I heard two men had been on a fishing boat.”

Chef Gary Howells watched the operation from the balcony of his home.

He said: “I was in the back of the house cooking dinner when I heard sirens. My heart goes out to the poor man. I wish him the best.”

The drama happened just before 6pm when police, ambulance crews and an RNLI lifeboat were called to Grove Avenue near the Talk of the Town pub.

RNLI spokesman Chris Davey said: “The Whitstable lifeboat was launched at 5.50pm after a report that one or two people were in the water off Leysdown.

“The crew arrived at 6pm and found a man in his 40s on the beach being treated by an RNLI lifeguard and a paramedic.

“Two of the lifeboat crew went ashore to help with first aid and then an ambulance crew arrived.

“At 6.11pm the lifeboat was diverted to another incident at Herne Bay.”

A spokesman for the ambulance service said: “We sent two cars and two ambulances to

Grove Avenue at 5.30pm. There were two patients. One was OK and didn’t need treatment.

“The other, an adult man, needed resuscitation at the scene and was in a serious condition. He was taken to King’s College Hospital, London.”

RNLI lifeguard manager, James Uren, said: "It appears the two friends had both been in a boat, although we’re not sure what type, and had drifted into the designated bathing zone.

"Both men were wearing lifejackets, which the RNLI always recommends, but something must have happened which resulted in them being in the water.

"We have not been made aware of the outcome of the incident but we sincerely hope it was positive. Thankfully our lifeguards were on hand to offer assistance."

The RNLI is currently running a national safety campaign called ‘Respect the Water’.

To find out more tips and advice as part of this, visit www.rnli.org.uk/respectthewater