Cliff danger warning after rescue

Warnings about the dangers of climbing cliffs along the Sussex coast have come from coastguards after four teenagers were winched to safety.

Dover Coastguard said the youngsters scaled cliffs at Rockanore, Hastings, and then became stuck.

A spokesman said several children had been throwing stones at a digger on the beach and were chased away by some men. Four youngsters then scaled the cliff.

Three girls and a boy were winched to the top. They had scrapes and bruises.

Coastguards received the alert on Friday at about 1230 BST, and a coastguard rescue team including a helicopter went to the scene along with an RNLI vessel and an all-weather boat.

'Very dangerous'

A spokesman said: "As the light faded, their situation worsened as they [the youngsters] could not see the terrain around them.

"The density of the undergrowth on the cliff made for a hazardous recovery for the coastguard rescue team, so the coastguard helicopter was called in."

The inshore lifeboat had to remain at the scene to act as a marker for the helicopter, he added.

Trevor Dowle, watch manager, said: "Cliffs can be very dangerous and climbing them can put you at risk - that risk is worsened by darkness falling."