Drama unfolded at Tenby’s Castle Beach on aturday afternoon.

After a scheduled 2 pm sailing had departed, a tractor operating Tenby Harbour’s low water landing stage became bogged on an exceptionally low tide in soft sand.

Unfortunately, the second tractor on standby was unable to pull the tractor out and due to lateral forces at work, the tractor could not be removed from the stage. As the tide rose quickly, nothing more could be done.

“The decision was made to remove the 25-litre fuel tank to avoid a pollution incident and to mark the area with bouys,” explained Angus Dunlop, director of Tenby Seal Safari.

HM Coastguard was informed and a vessel was immediately placed on standby to alert passing traffic and illuminate the scene at dark. One such vessel was logged.

“On the outgoing tide at approximately 1 am, a tracked excavator extracted the tractor,” explained Angus. “It was taken immediately to an ex-RNLI engineer for damage limitation.

“The landing stage was unaffected and back in operation on Sunday morning.

“It was an unprecedented and unfortunate event and one change has already been made to operating procedures to ensure this does not happen again.”

And Angus added: “On reflection, I was impressed with the way our team engaged emergency procedures so swiftly and dealt with the incident with confidence. I was also touched at the manner in which the community contacted myself to lend a huge amount of support and assistance.

“I’m afraid, though, our much-loved tractor will now be put out to pasture.”