People who defied weather warnings to jump in rough seas at Saundersfoot during Thursday night’s high tide have been labelled ‘totally stupid’ by the seaside village’s harbour authority.

The incident occurred at around 8 pm when three males took it in turns to dive into the water, despite warnings over the dangers that Storm Ellen would bring with the high tides combined with strong winds.

One male alarmingly launched into a backflip at one point to hit the water, much to the stunned amazement of as people looking on nearby.

A bystander took to throwing a life buoy from the harbour surroundings into the sea due to one of the males struggling in the rough waters.

Saundersfoot harbourmaster Dave Richards who said that his staff has finished their duties for the day by the time the incident unfolded, said the irresponsible behaviour of the men had risked putting unnecessary strain on RNLI volunteers and Coastguards.

“It’s totally stupid to think you can jump in the sea in the middle of a gale like that. It’s totally unacceptable. Common sense should prevail,” he stated.

Mr Richards added that in all his years, he had never witnessed or heard anything like it before.

The Coastguard Rescue Team from Tenby was sent together with Dyfed-Powys Police to the scene in Saundersfoot following a report of children on the slipway.

“At 8.20 pm last night, HM Coastguard received a 999 call from a concerned member of the public reporting a group of children on the slipway at Saundersfoot in windy conditions and with strong waves breaking over the slipway,” said a spokesperson for HM Coastguard.

Earlier in the day warnings had been issued by Pembrokeshire County Council and emergency services for flood alerts, with the public advised to avoid exposed coastal locations because of the threat posed by large waves.

The seafront at Amroth was closed by 9 pm Thursday night due to waves and debris washing over the road, with the road not able to open until the following morning.