A woman was rescued and airlifted to hospital after her leg became trapped in the rocks in Seaham Harbour.
Dramatic photos show emergency services including the coastguard, the Great North Air Ambulance, the North East Ambulance Service and firefighters from Seaham and Peterlee responding to the emergency on Sunday morning.
Fishermen also helped the emergency services to free the woman whose injuries are not thought to be serious.
A spokesperson for County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service said they were alerted at 11.50am on Sunday by the Coastguard.
They added: "One crew from Seaham and a crew from Peterlee along with the boat crew were quickly dispatched.
"Firefighters used specialist working at height equipment to rescue the woman who was quickly airlifted to hospital at around 12.30pm.
"Her injuries are not thought to be serious."
A NEAS spokesperson said: "We received a call at 11:53am on Sunday 21 November, to concerns for a woman in the water off Seaham Harbour. We dispatched one ambulance crew, three crews from our Hazardous Area Response Team (HART), and received assistance from the Great North Air Ambulance Service and the coastguard. We took one patient to Sunderland Royal hospital for further treatment."
