Sandymouth Beach: Body recovered of man who died in cliffs collapse Published duration 17 July 2019

image caption The man's body was recovered after a 28-hour operation by the emergency services

The body of a man who died in a cliff collapse at a beach has been recovered in a 28-hour operation.

The fire service led the "technically difficult" operation after the rock fall at Sandymouth beach near Bude.

They were first called at about 12:00 BST on Tuesday, but could not recover the body immediately and returned with extra equipment on Wednesday morning.

Firefighter Richard Gibbons said the man's body had been pinned beneath "substantial pieces of stonework".

Mr Gibbons, who is the incident commander, added that his thoughts were with the man's family.

He said firefighters recognised soon after the body was discovered that Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service did not have the equipment needed to recover it. Teams from Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service were called in.

Devon and Cornwall Police said the man's next of kin had been informed.

image caption Firefighter Richard Gibbons said the man's body had been pinned beneath "substantial pieces of stonework".

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