THE Royal National Lifeboat Institute has shared safety tips when kayaking and canoeing after volunteer lifesavers from Teignmouth RNLI were tasked by HM Coastguard to reports of an unmanned kayak off the coast of Dawlish this past weekend.

On Sunday, June 4, reports had been received of an unmanned kayak, similar looking to one that had been seen earlier in the afternoon with a person onboard.

The volunteer crew launched The Two Annes Lifeboat at 3.38pm and were on scene by 3.45pm, where the crew located another kayaker towing the reported unmanned kayak towards the safety of Boat Cove.

To be certain that there was no casualty in the water the volunteer crew conducted a thorough search of the area.

Following this search no person was found and so, after liaising with HM Coastguard, the volunteer crew stood down and returned to the boathouse.

A spokesman for RNLI Teignmouth said: Kayaking, canoeing and paddle-boarding are popular activities along our coastline, if you spot anyone in danger please call 999 and ask for the coastguard.

'If you loose your kayak or paddleboard you can inform the Coastguard directly, giving them the last known location and any identifying colours/designs.'

► For those planning on heading out on the water this summer, check out this handy guides on staying safe.