River rescuer says he’s no hero after pulling man from the water at Welney

A workman has shrugged off being called a hero after he rescued a man from a river.

Gary Cross, who is part of the traffic management team working on the flood defence project being carried out along the river at Welney, leapt into action – without getting his feet wet – to rescue the stricken pensioner.

He was manning the traffic lights on the haul road which runs along the river from Welney when he heard a woman’s shout for help.

Gary, who runs his own traffic management firm and lives in Peterborough, said: “I heard this voice shouting help my husband has fallen in the river, and when I looked over I could see him in the water.

“He was on his back so his face was out of the water but he was struggling to get himself to the bank. My first thought was ‘oh God, I’m going to be wet for the rest of the day’ as I thought I was going to have to jump in.

“I was on the opposite side river, but I soon ran around, and thankfully when I got there I found a wooden pontoon – it was very big, but it was enough for me to be able to reach the man – so I was saved from having to jump in after all.

“He was a big bloke, at least 6ft and he weighed at least as much as me, so it was a bit of a struggle, but I eventually I managed to get him onto the bank and turn him over so he could crawl up.

“Once he got to the top of the bank I managed to help him stand up and he didn’t seem too much the worse for his experience.

“I wouldn’t like to be called a hero, because it wasn’t that dramatic, but I suppose it could have been more serious if I wasn’t there to help him out.”

Gary added: “The man had been strimming the steep bank when he slipped and fell in the water – the best of it is he managed to save his strimmer from getting wet – typical bloke.

“His wife was very grateful and led him back into the house while telling him he is banned from strimming the bank from now on.”