WESTON lifeboat crews were out at the weekend searching for a missing kite surfer.

WESTON lifeboat crews were out at the weekend searching for a missing kite surfer.

The Atlantic 75 and D-Class were launched at 12.56 on Saturday after multiple 99 calls from concerned members of the public who could see a kite in the water but no surfer with it.

The crews faced force five winds with very choppy seas and discovered the wreck of a kite on the west facing rocks of Knightstone Island.

The crew quickly searched the surrounding area for the missing surfer but found nothing.

The RNLI crews, working alongside shore-based coastguards, then widened their search area and began searching southwards along the beach towards Brean Down.

At the same time visibility was seriously decreased by a hail storm limiting the speed the crews could search the sea.

While the search continued, Swansea coastguard received a further 999 call confirming that the missing surfer was now safely ashore and did not require medical attention.

Shore-based coastguards were able to recover his kite preventing any further incident and the RNLI lifeboats returned to the lifeboat station on Birnbeck Island just an hour after launch.

Crewman Liam Mc Dermott said: "Weather conditions on Saturday made searching for a person in the water very difficult. As RNLI volunteers the lifeboat crew train twice a week and in all weather conditions for just this type of emergency and everyone on station is pleased that the incident was resolved quickly.