A MAN had to be rescued from a lock on a Blackburn canal after trying to swim from one side to the other.

Two fire engines from Blackburn with Darwen along with water incident and air support teams attended the scene on Grimshaw Park at 8pm last night.

 Crew manager Chris Jowett said: "We received a call from a member of the public to say that a man was stuck in the locks.

"The person had said they could swim across to the other side of the canal but when they got there they could not climb up the ladder.

"They were in the water for about an hour and were cold and did not have strength to get out.

"We had to send a team down to help him with ropes.

"We have had a few calls to attend incidents at the same site and we would urge people not to go in the water.

"You don't know what is under the surface and could get caught up in something.

"You need to be careful as there is the potential for fast-flowing water especially if the lock was opened again.

"We were there for 30 minutes and the man was very cold and was treated by paramedics and was shook up.

"It is important not to take the risks and the man was lucky that someone saw him and reported it to us."