A man in his 40s who was stranded waist-deep in mud after falling into a river was brought to safety by two fire crews.

East Anglian Daily Times: Emergency services worked to rescue the man from the river in Colchester. Picture: PCSO EMMA WRIGHTEmergency services worked to rescue the man from the river in Colchester. Picture: PCSO EMMA WRIGHT (Image: Picture: PCSO EMMA WRIGHT)

Engines from Colchester were sent to rescue the man at around 6pm last night in Haven Road, after being alerted to the incident by two students from the University of Essex who spotted the man falling into the river.

Upon arrival, crews found a man who was stuck in mud up to his waist around 20 metres from land near the River Colne - which is a small river that runs through Colchester and joins the sea near Brightlingsea.

Essex County Fire and Rescue attended along with police and ambulance staff as firefighters attempted to rescue the male from the water.

A spokesman for Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said: "Firefighters used water rescue equipment to reach the man and help him back to safety by 6.45pm."

Essex Police PCSO Emma Wright tweeted about the incident and said it was the "fast actions" from the students which helped get emergency services to the scene quickly.

The man was left in the care of the Ambulance Service.

His rescue comes just two days after fire crews in Suffolk saved a woman trapped in floodwater after the River Orwell began bursting its banks in The Strand.

A number of areas across Suffolk and Essex have been flooded over the weekend following Storm Ciara, which saw wind gusts of up to 80mph and closed the Orwell Bridge for most of Sunday.

Read more: Woman trapped as The Strand floods under Orwell BridgeFurther wind warnings have since been issued for the coming weekend, with Storm Dennis expected to cause similar disruption to travel on Saturday.

More: Storm Dennis set to bring 'very strong winds' to Suffolk and Essex