Police have issued an urgent plea to people ahead of Boxing Day, as two men are feared to be missing at sea. The traditional Christmas Day swim turned into a nightmare today in the east Devon town of Budleigh Salterton.

Emergency services were called to the area at 10.25am on Christmas Day after concerns for people in the water. A number of people were safely recovered to shore, with two checked by paramedics and another taken to hospital as a precaution, police said. Two men, one aged in their 40s and the other in their 60s, were not located during the search and are missing at sea after getting into difficulty off the beach.

The search involving the coastguard and RNLI was called off at approximately 5pm, Devon and Cornwall Police confirmed. The families have been informed of developments, a force spokeswoman said.

A Met Office yellow weather warning for wind was in place across parts of southwestern England and Wales on Christmas Day, and a number of Christmas and Boxing Day swims in Devon and Cornwall were cancelled due to it.

No warnings have been issued for Boxing Day but police still urged people not to go swimming in the sea.

Detective Superintendent Hayley Costar, of Devon and Cornwall Police, said: “Today, emergency services have been responding to a truly tragic incident in Budleigh Salterton.

“Our thoughts remain firmly with the families and friends of the two men who are currently missing and to all who may have witnessed and be impacted by the incident.

“The local community will have seen a significant amount of emergency services in the area throughout the day as extensive enquiries have been ongoing.

“As dark falls, a number of these searches have been stood down, with some police enquiries on land continuing this evening.

“There have been weather warnings in place this week and a number of official and unofficial swims have already been cancelled.

“While there are no official warnings in place for tomorrow, we urge anyone with plans to go swimming in the sea on Boxing Day not to.”