A ten-year-old girl and a man were being treated in hospital for hypothermia today after their kayak capsized off the south coast of Devon, coastguards said.
They were paddling in the sea off Thurlestone, near Salcombe, when their small boat capsized, throwing them into the water.
Coastguards said the alarm was raised by a golfer on a nearby coastal course who heard "people screaming from the water below for help" and called 999 at 1pm.
A coastguard rescue team and the Hope Cove Independent Lifeboat raced to the scene and a surfer helped pull them from the water before they were flown to hospital in Plymouth for treatment.
Dave Colmer, from Brixham Coastguard, said: "They were both being washed up against the rocks; a surfer was able to help assist them by getting in close to the rocks in order to evacuate them to the rescue boat.
"The paramedics from the rescue helicopter assessed the two casualties who were suffering from hypothermia; they were taken to Derriford hospital by helicopter."