Man who fell in 'ferocious' River Trent saved by non-swimmer workman

Peter Etchell (centre) was rescued from the Trent by non-swimmer Mike Anscombe (left) and colleague Wes Naulls

A man who fell into a river in North Lincolnshire has praised two workmen who came to his rescue - despite one being a non-swimmer.

Pete Etchell, 61, was mowing his lawn in West Butterwick last Wednesday when he slipped down the 20ft (6m) bank into the "ferocious" River Trent.

His wife Cath flagged down the workmen who sprang into action and hauled Mr Etchell to safety with ropes.

Mr Etchell praised the pair, saying they acted "without any hesitation".

He told the BBC: "If they had not, it would have been a very different outcome."

Mr Etchell said the water was "up to his neck" and freezing cold, and his coat, jumper and boots were weighing him down too much to swim.

The bank was too slippery to climb back up and because he suffers from Dupuytren's contracture, which affects a person's ability to grip, he could not hold on to anything.

He managed to get his phone out of his pocket to tell Mrs Etchell he was in trouble.

She frantically alerted two broadband engineers on the street who were on their lunch break.

Mr Etchell, who was in the water for about 15 minutes, said that Mike Anscombe and Wes Naulls, who work for Quickline, "just got on with it" and acted with the "utmost calm and professionalism".

Pete Etchell with his wife Cath, who raised the alarm

They used some rope from their van to tie around Mr Etchell then hauled him up the bank, with the help of Mrs Etchell and a neighbour.

Mr Etchell said: "I was a complete deadweight and it was so cold. I was in shock when I got back to the garden.

"If they had not been there and helped I think I would have been taken away with the tide and died."

Mr Anscombe, 45, said he did not think about the danger even though he cannot swim - he just acted on instinct.

He said: "I went into survival mode. The water was high and fast-flowing and he was stuck in the sand - there was nowhere to get a foothold to climb out."

After getting Mr Etchell up the bank they took him into the house where "Cath took over".

Mr Anscombe added: "He was in trouble, I didn't think about not being able to swim and it's a bit of a blur now... but I would have done it a thousand times.

"I did what anyone would do.

"But this was definitely a sign I need to finally do some swimming lessons and learn to swim."