Onlookers battle in vain to rescue van being swamped by rising tide after driver parked it on beach

Onlookers looked on in shock as a van sunk beneath the waves off a beach this afternoon, before a man swam out to the driver’s seat to rescue his cigarettes. 

Despite the best efforts of HM coastguard to retrieve a van that was stuck in the sea on Redcar beach, Teesside, on Sunday, the vehicle quickly became submerged.

Eyewitnesses said the van became stuck as the tide came while it was loading a jet ski on to the beach. 

When the van was mostly submerged, its driver swam out to retrieve several boxes of cigarettes. 

Onlookers watched as the HM coastguard struggled to retrieve a van that was stuck in the sea on Redcar beach, Teesside, on Sunday afternoon

The HM coastguard were reported to have struggled to shift the van, as their ropes kept on snapping. A tractor was also seen driving out to assist the coastguard staff with the rescue

The van’s owner was seen wading out into the water to retrieve two items from inside the vehicle

After swimming out to the van, the mystery driver returned to shore clutching four cigarette packets

Keighly Finnegan told Gazette Live: ‘The van came on the beach and it had the trailer and speedboat on the back and he kind of did a big U-turn down the other end and went back.

‘And then as soon as the engine cut off all of a sudden you could see there was something going on because he was just gesturing and troubled faces and all that kind of stuff.

‘He ran back here and then a woman went off the beach and then they came back and there was a lot to do.’ 

The white van was quickly engulfed by water as the tide rapidly rose, with onlookers desperately gathering to try and push the car out of the soft sand.

But the van remained stuck on the beach and eventually became almost fully submerged in water, with only the roof visible above the ocean.

 The HM coastguard were pictured trying to pull the van out of the sea as crowds of onlookers stood on the shoreline to watch the scene.

A tractor was also pictured driving out into the ocean to help coastguard staff with the vehicle rescue. 

But coastguard staff were reported to have struggled to shift the van, as their ropes kept on snapping.

The vehicle was said to have become trapped early afternoon, as onlookers attempted to try and dig the van out of the soft sand

The van quickly became submerged by the tide, after a driver had seemingly parked his car on the beach and left it, with people taking to Twitter to share their shock at the scene

A man was later filmed wading out to sea to try and ‘collect belongings’ from the vehicle, in footage posted on Twitter. 

Twitter account Incidents TeesDurham said the man climbed on top of his vehicle and returned to shore ‘with two things’.

The car was said to have become trapped early afternoon, with people taking to Twitter to share their shock at the unusual scene.

One user shared a picture of the van, saying: ‘I love the north, just seen this in Redcar.’

Another person said: ‘Think you’re having a bad day! Poor b******’s van has gone for a swim in Redcar.’

MailOnline have contacted the HM Coastguard for more information.