A man who was stopped on suspicion of driving without insurance had to be rescued after he jumped into a freezing river in a bid to escape.
The 26-year-old motorist was stopped by police at the BP garage on Leeds Road earlier tonight but ran off and ended up in the fast-flowing River Calder nearby.
Several police officers scrambled down the river banking at around 7.45pm and managed to keep the man’s head above water using their coats.
Officers managed to hold onto him for around five minutes until fire crews arrived from Rastrick, Mirfield, Huddersfield and Ossett.
The man was rescued by a firefighter in a dry suit after a rescue ladder was lowered into the water which was around 18ft deep.
Inspector Graham Hawcroft of West Yorkshire Police praised the rescuers for acting quickly.
“He could quite easily have been swept away. Officers went down the banking and used their coats to stop him from being dragged off.
“He was quite a big fellow. Because of his size, and the strength of the water, they couldn’t pull him out. The managed to hang onto him for a few minutes.”
The man was taken to hospital for treatment and is understood to be recovering well. Police investigations are continuing.
A VW Golf was placed on a recovery truck at the BP garage and taken away shortly after the incident.
A West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service spokesman said the man had been in the water for around 15 minutes.
“He was struggling to hold himself up as he was very cold. The water where he went in is about 18ft deep. He was being held by policemen on the bank side. There were two or three police officers down there with him.
“One of the officers was using a jacket and there was a dog handler using a rope. He was rescued and handed over to Yorkshire Ambulance Service.”
