Coastguards and lifeboat crew faced a "tricky" rescue in rough seas in Falmouth last night.

A crew member of a cargo vessel in Falmouth Bay had fallen in the rough conditions and needed taking to hospital, due to his injuries.

The Falmouth All Weather Lifeboat crew met the vessel in the bay just before 9.20pm and took the man off the ship.

Deputy Second Coxswain Dave Nicoll said: "We managed to carry out a safe transfer of the injured crewman to the lifeboat. This was made easier by the assistance of the pilot on board the ship by giving us a lee."

The lifeboat crew on duty were deputy second coxswain Dave Nicoll, second coxswain Luke Wills, Andy Jenkin, Tom Bird, Adrian Hingston, William Allen and Tamara Brookes.

Once back ashore, Falmouth Coastguard Rescue Team members and RNLI crew worked together to manoeuvre the stretcher off the All Weather Lifeboat and into the coastguard station.

The casualty was then checked over by paraemdics and, working together, the teams removed him from the stretcher that the ship's crew had initially placed him on, and onto the ambulance stretcher.

The injured man was then taken to the Royal Cornwall Hospital for further treatment.

A coastguard spokesperson said: "A great example of team work, making what was a tricky lift as comfortable for the casualty as possible.

"We wish him a speedy recovery."

The 7,642 tonne Dutch-registered ship had been on passage from Bilbao to Liverpool.