A dog owner has been dramatically rescued from a rough sea after he jumped in to save his pet.

Curtis Johnson, 33, was left “shaken” after he got into difficulty while attempting to save his dog Rex, who had jumped off the sea wall along Cromer promenade in Norfolk.

Volunteer crews from the RNLI raced to rescue the pair on Saturday morning as powerful waves threw them around close to the sea wall.

Footage filmed by a local angler shows the 33-year-old clutching his dog as he is battered by the waves.

A Cromer inshore lifeboat speeds towards the pair and volunteers throw a life ring to Mr Johnson, who is repeatedly engulfed by the water.

The man and dog are later pulled on to the lifeboat.

Read more from Sky News:
The Shining actress dies
Bushey victim’s final social media post
Pregnant women urged to get vaccine

Speaking after the incident, Mr Johnson said he was not familiar with the area and had briefly let his dog off the lead. Rex then unexpectedly jumped over the sea wall and fell into the water.

“I can only think he thought it was like one of our local beach walking spots where the sea wall and the sea are the same height,” Mr Johnson said.

He said his dog has “excellent recall” but had jumped “so quickly”.

“I was really panicked and it was a passerby who told me to call 999 and ask for the Coastguard and not just jump straight in. I entered the water as safely as I could and got to Rex however it was clear it wasn’t going to be easy to get out,” he said.

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free

The situation quickly devolved as Mr Johnson realised the strong waves had cut him off from the promenade steps and the tide moved in quickly.

Mr Johnson thanked the volunteer crew who saved him, saying it was a “super fast response” and that one of them had been woken by the pager going off.

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

“Rex and I are ok but very shaken by our experience and I want my story to help others to make the right choices and stay safe at the coast,” he said.

One of the rescuers, Paul Watling, said it was a “challenging rescue” and things “could easily have ended differently”.

“We strongly urge people not to enter the water to attempt a rescue when a dog enters the sea. The animal will usually return safely on its own. On these occasions the best advice is to dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard,” he said.

Related posts:

UK reports 15 more COVID deaths and 2,381 new cases as second vaccine doses pass 14.5 million People who’ve had COVID get ‘enhanced’ protection against variants from one vaccine dose – study Five arrested in dawn raid after 2.3 tonnes of cocaine worth £190m seized from luxury yacht Online post-Christmas sales shopping to increase but people to spend more, survey finds Identity of man who denies being US rape fugitive could soon be confirmed by Scottish court Giggs’s ex admits lying to footballer about having ‘cancerous cells’ – and staged photo after alleged headbutt ‘Moved beyond measure’: King issues message of thanks to nation on the eve of Queen’s funeral ‘It was an honour’: Last person to see the Queen lying in state talks of her pride Bear Grylls to King’s goodbye message – key moments of the Queen’s funeral so far Injured survivors from Manchester bombing suing MI5 Mother whose abusive ex-partner broke her hand leads campaign to change law over access to children Grandmother killed in knife attack ‘devoted to family’