Range Rover submerged by tide on UK beach after owner tries to tow friend's car

Range Rover submerged by tide on UK beach after owner tries to tow friend's car Two vehicles were submerged by the tide after getting stuck on a beach as onlookers watched what they called a "really stupid" incident - rescue workers could only tow the vehicles after the tide went out Footage has emerged of two vehicles submerged in the sea at a UK beach - after a Range Rover driver tried to help his friend escape the water. The cars slowly dipped below the waves until only an aerial was visible above the water. One of the vehicles submerged was a £120,000 Range Rover. The driver of the luxury vehicle was trying to help a friend whose van was submerged, only to find himself in the same predicament. The driver of the SUV was forced to abandon his car when the rescue mission backfired on Scarborough beach in North Yorkshire. Crowds gathered on Friday, June 19, as the high-performance Range Rover SVR attempted to drag a stranded Transit van out of the sea. But after multiple failed attempts shortly after 6pm the SUV – which even has a sand driving mode – got stuck too. Baffled onlookers watched as the men rejected help before both vehicles were eventually submerged. They even tried digging the vehicles free with a plastic spade. Eyewitness Sammy Hellewell, 39, filmed the bungled rescue attempt. "We were heading to a local restaurant on the corner of that area and we saw them having difficulties with the van," she said. "One of the guys was trying to dig the front wheels out with a spade. "Then the Range Rover came on with the idea to pull the van out. Which obviously didn't go very well. "Some local people did go down and give them some advice to try and use the jet skis to get it out of the sand, but they were quite rude to him and gave him the impression that they knew what they were doing and told them to leave them alone." Sammy recalled how the incident was "absolutely stupid". "I filmed it for my father-in-law, I thought he would find it hilarious with how silly they were being trying to get these cars free. "The driver had clearly reversed it in for the jet ski and got stuck. "The Range Rover was fully mobile and then the back wheels started to sink while they weren't paying attention." The men managed to get the jet ski to the beach, but lost both vehicles. "At points they were trying to lift the front of the van. A lot of it was really stupid," Sammy said. "By the end they were fully submerged. We left the scene after a couple of hours. Sammy headed home at around 10.30pm and she said that the vehicles were completely submerged. "You could just see the aerial of the van sticking out of the water," he said. Rescue workers told Sammy they were waiting for low tide for each vehicle to be towed out. "They said the chaps' insurance would be void and they said they would be billing the parties involved," she said. Both vehicles were eventually hauled out off the beach by diggers but were unlikely to be in a fit state to be driven.