A six-foot wave has wreaked havoc, sinking yachts and causing hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of damage at a UK marina.

The failure of lock gates was reportedly the cause at Maryport marina, Cumbria.
The gates were recently refurbished at a cost of £300,000.Maryport coastguard was called out to oversee the rescue operation after boats were thrown against each other and sunk.

At least 10 boats have been damaged, six of them severely.

A catamaran ended up on its side and marina jetties have been pushed to a 90 degree angle.

Two fire engines also attended the scene and Maryport inshore rescue team was called out to pull some boats to safety.

Marina bosses are working frantically to track down boat owners to tell them of the incident.

Pauline Gorley, general manager of Maryport Developments, said she believed the marina gates’ locking mechanism had failed causing them to fall into the sea and create the wave.

An investigation will be launched and will take several months.

Inspector Chris Wright, of Cumbria police, said they recieved reports the dock gates had collapsed due to the high winds and a high tide.