THIS is the incredible moment a crowd of tourists rush to pull a stranded ice cream van out of the ocean after it was swept out to sea.
The owner was left red in the face after going to the bathroom.
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The truck was parked on Harlyn Bay Beach, near Newquay, Cornwall, when its owner disappeared to answer nature’s call.
In the meantime, the tide came in and swallowed the engine, trapping it in the sand and waves.
Incredible videos show dozens of beachgoers forming a tug-of-war team to desperately try to pull the ‘Kelly Whip’ van out of the sea with a rope, but to no avail.
A 4×4 with a tow truck also tried to free him, but he didn’t move.
At high tide, the van was seen almost completely submerged, being hit by waves as onlookers looked on in disbelief.
Eventually, when the sea receded at around 9pm, a tractor managed to drag him back to the beach.
Holidaymaker James Price, 26, said: “When the tide came in everyone looked for the owner and started trying to pull him to safety.
“We managed to get most of the ice cream out, except for a few raspberry ripples that fell into the sea, and put it in a local cafe.
“When the owner returned about an hour and a half later, he said he had stomach problems and had gone to the bathroom.
“He was an old man who had worked on the beach for 20 years.
“He was very embarrassed.
“It went further and ran aground and the coastguard put a cordon around it with a diver to stop people getting close to it.
“There were lots of fish swimming around, eating all the biscuits and flakes.
“One guy took out his fishing rod and caught some bass that were circling.
“When the tide went out at night, a tractor was called to remove it.
“The owner was obviously upset because his van was completely ruined.”
A local resident said the driver had left the van stuck in the sand the previous week.
HM Coastguard said: “Shortly before 5pm yesterday (7th July), HM Coastguard was informed of an ice cream van which had been caught in the tide in Harlyn Bay, Cornwall.
“The Padstow Coastguard Rescue Team and RNLI lifeguards were deployed to ensure the safety of those involved.
“The driver was safe and well and was not in the vehicle. The owner arranged for a recovery vehicle which recovered the van at approximately 9:45 pm when the tide had receded enough that it was safe to do so.
“Coast Guard rescue officers departed once the vehicle was recovered and in a safe location.”
In July last year, residents of St Ives, Cornwall, were at their wits end due to reckless tourists driving through the sand and getting stuck.
Another crazy tourist got his £55,000 Mercedes EQB stuck in the sand thinking the beach was a car park.
An angry local blasted the scene at nearby Towan Beach in Newquay, fuming: “More money than sense.
“You buy a Chelsea tractor with four-wheel drive and think that means it will really go anywhere. But it won’t.”
In June 2022, even an AA van became stuck in the sand after being sent to recover a stuck car at Porth Beach in Newquay.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
