AN INJURED fisherman has been rescued by the coastguard and airlifted to hospital.
The rescue helicopter was scrambled to a Belgium fishing trawler 17 nautical miles off the coast of Newhaven yesterday.
The fisherman was winched from the boat and airlifted to hospital.
In a tweet, Newhaven RNLI said: "Lifeboat and seven crew launched to injured casualty aboard Belgium fishing trawler 17NM (nautical miles) SSW (south-southwest) of Newhaven.
"We arrived on the scene. Also scrambled was a rescue helicopter who confirmed their ability to winch casualty directly.
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"Lifeboat stood down and casualty airlifted to hospital."
The rescue came hours after Storm Bella battered the south coast, causing big waves and flooding roads.
A number of trees were also uprooted, causing damage to a number of cars.
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