A MOTORCYCLIST had to be rescued after becoming stuck in the river on a West Devon dam.

Devon and Somerset Fire Service said it had been called out to Lopwell Dam, near Plymouth, at 1.30pm on Sunday.

Plymouth Coastguard Rescue Team was also called out to help at the incident, which happened after the bike rider got caught by what was described as a strong overfall. Firefighters said the bike and rider, who was uninjured, were retrieved and rescued from the water.

A fire service spokesperson said: “We were called at 1.35pm to an incident where a male was stuck in the water with his motorbike. We rescued him from the top of the weir and he was uninjured.”

Ryan Higgins is a friend of the biker and was phoned by him for help at his Plymouth home after struggling to prevent his newly-bought bike falling into the fast-flowing River Tavy while trying to take a photo of it in the dramatic setting. Ryan said: “He went to save the bike and went over the rocks with it.”

Ryan jumped into his car immediately he got the call from his friend. In the meantime, he lost his phone in the water and shouted for help. A resident heard him and threw a line into the water which he tied to himself and his bike. Ryan added: “I went down to the water’s edge to see how we could pull him up over the rocks. Within five minutes of me being there working out a rescue plan, the emergency servces arrived and started to take over the situation.

“He was in the water for about an hour holding himself and the bike up by getting his feet between some rocks. Once rescued, he was checked over by the paramedic for hypothermia.”