Major search called off after reports of woman in water in Porthcawl

A major search which was launched following reports of a woman in the water at Porthcawl has been called off.

Emergency services had been at the scene since just before 6pm on Tuesday when the alarm was raised.

Coastguard rescue teams from Porthcawl, Port Talbot, and Llantwit Major were involved in the search along with the police helicopter and coastguard helicopter.

A lifeboat from Mumbles also supported the search.

The search entered its second day yesterday after disruptive weather caused by Storm Jocelyn forced rescuers to stop overnight.

On Wednesday evening the Maritime and Coastguard Agency confirmed its operation had been called off due to the length of time that had passed since the search started.

Officers from South Wales Police will continue its investigation into the incident.

Mumbles Lifeboat RNLI described on their social media the conditions on Tuesday night as they joined the search.

In a video on their Facebook page they said that at 6.40pm they joined teams from Port Talbot, Llantwit Major, and the Coastguard helicopter to help the search. The team searched for more than five hours before the search was halted due to deteriorating conditions.

Lifeboat coxswain Josh Stewart said on Wednesday: "I'm immensely proud of our crews enthusiasm and professionalism last night.

"The conditions were some of the worst they'll ever have to launch into.

"The swell was well over 5m high and beam on which made visual search pretty tricky but it's what we train for and while we didn't get the result we wanted I'm still proud of our crew who made every effort to find the casualty.

"Our thoughts are with the casualty's family and friends at this time"

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