SWIMMERS braving the North Sea are being warned of the dangers of hypothermia - even in the summer.

It comes after RNLI lifeguards rescued a woman yesterday suffering the early stages of hypothermia from Scarborough’s South Bay.

Now those taking to the sea are being urged not to underestimate the chilly water temperatures.

Lifeguard Tim Machon was on patrol yesterday afternoon (Tuesday 26 July) when he spotted the woman in difficulty.

He said that he suspected that she was suffering the early stages of hypothermia and brought her back to shore on a rescue board.

There he was met by colleague Phil Dorman who had a towel and rubbed some warmth back into the casualty.

The pair took her further up the beach out of the wind where another colleagues, Gareth Oxley, was waiting with first aid equipment.

"I was confident that she was demonstrating hypothermic symptoms. We called for paramedics who took her to hospital for further treatment."

South Bay is increasingly popular with open water swimming groups and Tim said swimmers must respect the open water environment if they’re to avoid falling victim to the cold.

He said: "Many swimmers don’t realise that it only takes half an hour of submersion in the sea without a wet suit for the cold to penetrate and hypothermia to set in.

"The lady we rescued yesterday wasn’t from the local area and told us it was her first time swimming here.

"She was starting to train to swim the English Channel without a wetsuit but I don’t know whether she had used anything to insulate her skin before entering the water."

Open water swimmers are advised to stick close to shore where the water tends to be slightly warmer, wear brightly coloured swimming caps and discuss conditions with the on-duty lifeguards before entering the water.