Shaun Weir is leading a project on Loe Bar beach in Cornwall on behalf of the Environment Agency which involves fitting a large pipe from the lake to the sea as part of a flood prevention plan.

After spotting the pup he called experts from the Cornish Seal Sanctuary.

Sanctuary care team worker Grace Jones said: “The pup looked exhausted, which isn’t a surprise looking at the rough surf she would have had to swim through, it was around 10ft!”

The team gave the pup, who has been named Bella, a quick assessment and found she had a few superficial wounds, a high temperature and was missing a few claws on her front flippers.

She also only weighed 16kg so the decision was made to bring her back to the Sanctuary where she is recovering

Weir said “I brief my team every morning on what to expect during work, and also to be very conscious of the local wildlife that we may encounter.

“I haven’t ever assisted in a seal rescue before but I am so pleased to have been able to help”.

The Bam Nuttall and Sanctuary team with Bella