EXCLUSIVE: Dramatic moment pensioner is pulled from freezing River Thames in front of horrified tourists at London Eye
- Man, in his 60s, was dramatically rescued from the freezing River Thames
- He was seen thrashing about in the water before Harbour Master came to his aid
- After grabbing a rope, the man was pulled from the water treated for shock
- Do you know the man? Please contact tips@mailonline.com
This is the moment a pensioner was dramatically rescued from the River Thames – while London temperatures plummeted during Britain’s deep freeze.
The man in his 60s was seen thrashing about in the water as he struggled to stay afloat against the strong current.
Wearing a red hoody, he grabbed onto a rope that was flung to him by a man on the Harbour Master’s boat who came to his aid.
He was hauled out of the icy cold river and seen lying on the back of the blue vessel with water pouring from his shoes.
This is the moment that a pensioner was dramatically rescued from the River Thames – while London temperatures plummeted today during Britain’s deep freeze
The man in his 60s was seen thrashing about in the water as he struggled to stay afloat against the strong current. Wearing a red hoody, he grabbed onto a rope that was flung to him by a man on the Harbour Master’s boat who came to his aid
A passer-by told MailOnline: ‘I was walking by the London Eye on London’s Southbank when I saw a fully-clothed man attempting to swim against the current. He looked like he was a strong swimmer using breast and back stroke but he was struggling against the strong current’
The dramatic rescue took place in front of a river cruise just next to the top tourist spot London Eye.
The man rushed to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel where he was treated for shock but otherwise unharmed.
A passer-by told MailOnline: ‘I was walking by the London Eye on London’s Southbank when I saw a fully-clothed man attempting to swim against the current at just before 2pm.
‘He looked like he was a strong swimmer using breast and back stroke but he was struggling against the strong current.
‘I saw two police officers reporting the incident on their radios before a Port of London Authority boat quickly pulled him out of water by using a rope.
‘A lifeboat then took him to shore.
‘I have no idea how he ended up in the water in the first place. I cannot imagine how cold and how difficult it must have been swimming in the Thames on a wintry day like this.’
An RNLI spokeswoman said: ‘The Port of London Authority were first on the scene before he was transferred to an RNLI station where he was warmed up and given a change of clothes.
Two police officers reported the incident on their radios before a Port of London Authority boat quickly pulled him out of water using a rope
The man was hauled out of the icy cold river and seen lying on the back of the vessel with water pouring from his shoes
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that the man in his 60s was treated for shock at Whitechapel’s Royal London Hospital
‘He was then transferred to an ambulance and taken to hospital.’
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that the man in his 60s was treated for shock at Whitechapel’s Royal London Hospital.
London’s temperatures dropped to just five degrees centigrade today – while the BBC Weather Centre claimed the cold meant it felt more like a chilling two degrees centigrade.
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: ‘We were called today to reports of an incident at Victoria Embankment.
‘We sent an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and a single responder in a car to the scene.
‘We treated a man at the scene and took him to a major trauma centre as a priority.’