A father says he feared his twin daughters were going to die when they fell into the sea after drifting out on an inflatable unicorn.

Ben Taylor, who was visiting the beach at Botany Bay in Broadstairs, says if it was not for the quick thinking of RNLI lifeguard Josh Jones, he would have lost his girls.

Josh, 18, says he heard Evie and Lola Taylor, 12, screaming as they were being blown out to sea and started swimming towards them.

They fell into the water when the inflatable blew out after paddling out with their father.

After hearing their screams and swimming to reach them, Josh gave the girls advice to keep them calm and afloat before they were picked up by a Dutch couple in a passing boat.

The incident had sparked a major rescue operation involving the Coastguard helicopter, lifeboats from Margate and Ramsgate RNLI last Monday afternoon (July 29).

Josh said: “It was scary. When I started paddling out they were so far away. I was starting to get tired and all I could hear was the girls screaming. It was very nerve-wracking but I couldn’t let that stop me because I wanted to make sure the girls were OK.”

Margate’s inshore lifeboat crew found the floating toy and then recovered Mr Taylor from the water as he frantically tried to locate his daughters.

The crew met the Dutch couple, who were passing on a pleasure boat, and reunited Mr Taylor and his girls.

Mr Taylor said: “If it wasn’t for Josh, I wouldn’t have them here now. As soon as he was on the boat with the girls they were all smiles. He was fantastic.

“As a parent, it’s the scariest thing that can ever happen. I don’t care what people have to say about me – they can call me stupid, whatever – because my girls are safe, and they’re safe because of Josh, the crew, the Dutch couple.

“Getting the information out to the girls saved their lives. The reason they were out there doesn’t matter, because they’re here now.”

Josh said the girls did “everything they could have”, including remembering how to stay afloat and calling for help.

But despite the admiration from the Taylor family - who are from Chester and visiting family in Thanet - Mr Jones says he was just doing his job.

“It was lovely of them to say all of those things and it makes me really happy to hear, as ultimately helping people is the reason I became a lifeguard in the first place, “ he said. “But making sure they were OK was my focus.”

The Coastguard received several calls, sparking the huge emergency response amid fears the children were still in the water.

The incident has triggered a warning from the RNLI, telling beachgoers to save inflatable toys for swimming pools.

RNLI lifeguard supervisor for Thanet, Cameron Foreman, said: “It is important to remember that, although inflatables are fun at the swimming pool, they are not designed for outdoor water use, as they can easily get caught up in a rip-current or offshore wind. We strongly urge the public to not take inflatables out to sea, and to make sure that they remain in-between the red and yellow flags when swimming.”

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