Two divers who went missing from a broken-down boat were rescued after spending more than an hour in the water.

Crews from the RNLI in Walmer were called by the Coastguard to an area close to the South-West Goodwin buoy at 3.30pm yesterday.

Both Dover lifeboat and the Coastguard search and rescue helicopter were also involved in the operation.

The divers were spotted by teams in the chopper, who directed lifeboat crews to recover the casualties from the water.

This manoeuvre proved tricky because of the weight of the dive gear, the swell, and the running tide.

After 20 minutes, both divers were recovered safely to the lifeboat and welfare checks found they had been in the water for more than an hour.

They were returned to shore and their dive boat was towed back to the harbour by the lifeboat.

Speaking after the recovery, Walmer’s operations manager, Denis Brophy, said: “The crew performed with great professionalism under difficult circumstances this afternoon.

“A good job well done.”