'Vulnerable man' rescued from banks of river Lune

A vulnerable man was pulled from the banks of the river Lune in an early morning rescue operation, say fire services.
The man was helped to safety by firefightersThe man was helped to safety by firefighters
The man was helped to safety by firefighters

The man was discovered five metres down the bank near Cable Street in Lancaster at the back of Sainsbury's by police at around 6am on Wednesday, January 10.

Police then called for assistance from the fire service and coastguard.

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Watch Manager David Gillon said: "We completed the rescue of a gentleman who manged to gain access to the river bank next to the Lune.

"We think he had been there overnight, we don't know exactly how long he had been there but it was clear he had been there for some time.

"The police were first on the scene and called for assistance.

"We sent a ladder down from the path to the river bank and with fire fighters' assistance, the man managed to climb to safety.

"The man is believed to have suffered a slight leg injury.

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"We were very lucky with the tide. The water was about five metres from him.

"It would have been a completely different situation if we had had a rising tide, the man would have been at serious risk."

A spokesman for the coastguard said: "HM Coastguard requested the Morecambe RNLI volunteer lifeboat crew to assist police, fire officersand local coastguards dealing with an incident on the River Lune in Lancaster, between the Millennium and Carlisle bridges.

"The inshore lifeboat and hovercraft were both en-route to their launch site at Snatchems when they were stood down because the incident, involving a ‘vulnerable’ adult male, had been resolved."

The man was taken to hospital for treatment.

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