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Fishermen help save man after river fall
TWO fishermen helped to save a man from drowning in the River Lune near the Lune Aqueduct.
The pair spotted the local man, who was in his mid-thirties, at around 9pm on Saturday and one called the emergency services as the other ran across the aqueduct before wading in.
Cold and out of breath, he had to abandon his brave rescue attempt. Police and the coastguard attended the scene, but it was Lancaster firefighters who got their first to launch their inflatable boat and reached the stricken man, who was clinging to a pillar of the aqueduct bridge.
He did not appear to be seriously injured but was treated at the scene for hypothermia before being taken to the Royal Lancaster Infirmary by paramedics for observation overnight.
It is believed the man may have fallen from the top of the aqueduct but it is unclear how.
Lancaster Fire Station watch manager, Leo Loughrey, said: “Our main concern was hypothermia and we didn’t know how much longer he would be able to hold on for.
“The man could be heard screaming, but of course, that is a good sign
“We got their pretty rapidly and the whole thing was done and dusted in five minutes.
“When you have got somebody in the water you have got to get it sorted pretty sharpish because cold can set in really quickly.
“But had the fishermen not been there we could have been dealing with serious consequences.”
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Weather for Morecambe
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 8 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 6 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 29 mph
Wind direction: North west
