A MAN was arrested for being drunk and disorderly after he jumped into the River Nene in Wisbech on Tuesday.The 34-year-old man from Wisbech jumped into the river at about 4pm and was rescued by fire crews and staff from

A MAN was arrested for being drunk and disorderly after he jumped into the River Nene in Wisbech on Tuesday.

The 34-year-old man from Wisbech jumped into the river at about 4pm and was rescued by fire crews and staff from Wisbech Port, before being taken to hospital and arrested.

The man was subjected to the freezing cold waters for 15 minutes after he jumped off the town bridge, which links North Brink and South Brink.

He was clinging onto a lifeline thrown in by fire-fighters when Peter Harvey, harbour master at Wisbech Port, arrived to rescue him.

“It was an interesting spectator sport,” said Mr Harvey. “But had we not got there as quickly as we did his chances of survival would have been greatly compromised.

“He did seem the worse for drink, but whether that can be contributed to his strange propensity to jump in I don’t know.

“He was just clothed, there was an anorak and a boot heading downstream, but when he was pulled into the boat he had the awareness to pull his pants up.”

A spokeswoman for the fire service said: “Fire-fighters assisted the port authority in rescuing the individual by throwing a rope down for the man to catch. They then held him there until the port authority could launch its boat to rescue him.”

A police spokeswoman said the man was arrested after he was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn to be assessed. He has since been given a fixed penalty notice for being drunk and disorderly.