A disabled man who spent hours in a brook in a Leigh park was recovering after being rescued by firefighters and paramedics.

The man is believed to have crawled along the brook in Bonchurch Park trying to find a way up the 5ft banks but was unable to haul himself out.

Sub officer, Dave Still from Leigh fire station, said: "We were called in by the ambulance service to help rescue the man after he slipped down the bank.

"He had been unable to get out because of hip problems. We think he had been there for some time but he wasn't too distressed. He was put into a cage and we hauled him out. Luckily there wasn't much water in the brook."

The man, believed to be in his 50s was taken to Southend Hospital.

Published Monday, June 9, 2003

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