Dad ‘punched’ man who warned against entering sea with kids during Storm Austen

Oliver Pritchard-Jones | Freelance news reporter Published October 26, 2026 8:13am Updated October 26, 2026 8:13am A fight broke out on a Cornish beach after a passerby reportedly tried to warn a young family of the dangers of entering the sea at a ‘red-flagged’ beach in Cornwall. (Picture: BPM Media) This is the moment a dad appeared to punch a passer-by after the man reportedly warned him against entering the sea with his partner and children during a storm. The clip was recorded on Polzeath Beach in Cornwall as it was battered by Storm Austen on Friday afternoon. At the time, RNLI lifeguards had reportedly red-flagged the beach, meaning that people should not enter the water because it poses a high risk of drowning or injury. This apparently didn’t concern the family who had their wetsuits on and carried bodyboards as they played in the sea. A passer-by was recorded approaching the family shortly before 2pm. This triggered the man in a wetsuit to approach him and adopt a fighting stance. He appeared to punch the man, who left the scene, while the dad headed for the sea with one of his children. An RNLI pickup truck arrived a short time later and lifeguards removed the family from the otherwise deserted beach, according to a witness. The witness, who asked not to be named, told Cornwall Live: ‘I was just at Polzeath Beach and witnessed a family with young children enter the red-flagged beach. ‘A passer-by then approached them and the father of the family proceeded to punch him in the face. ‘The passer-by walked off after the altercation and a few minutes after the lifeguards on the beach asked the family to leave.’ He continued: ‘We were sat having a coffee and watched the family with very young-looking kids heading down to the water’s edge, battling with their boogie boards. ‘We thought they must be crazy going in as the swell and sea state was so rough, not to mention the 50 mph winds. ‘After a couple of minutes of being in the water, a passer-by walked to the water’s edge. We assumed they were suggesting it wasn’t safe. ‘Before long, the dad in the water sprinted out and started confronting the passer-by, who was obviously concerned for the family’s safety. Follow Metro on WhatsApp to be the first to get all the latest news Follow us to receive the latest news updates from Metro (Picture: Getty Images) Metro’s on Whatsapp! Join our community for breaking news and juicy stories. ‘The dad then got very close to the passer-by and put his fists up. Before we could start recording, he punched him. The passer-by didn’t seem to take the bait and shrugged it off.’ Storm Austen was the first named storm of the season and hit the UK on Friday before Storm Boelo continued to batter the UK over the rest of the weekend. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page. Arrow MORE: Driver, in 20s, becomes Storm Boelo’s second victim after tree crushes car in London Arrow MORE: Man jailed after ’28kg of cannabis found in his luggage’ at UK airport Arrow MORE: Two people crushed by collapsing scaffold in high winds of Storm Boelo News Updates Stay on top of the headlines with daily email updates.