FIRE crews and a police helicopter have rescued a man from the River Ouse.

The Sussex Control Centre received a call at 03;22am this morning reporting that a man had fallen in to the River Ouse, close to the A27 near Lewes.

Two Swift Water Rescue teams and the Technical Rescue Unit from Lewes and Crowborough fire stations searched the river starting at Southease and the Cuilfail Tunnel.

With the help of a police helicopter the man was found on the river bank at a location that was very difficult for crews to reach.  

The inaccessible location required the use of an inflatable path to reach the casualty who was conscious but suffering from the extreme cold.

Crews carried the man from the river and into the care of the ambulance service, before being taken to hospital.

Borough commander Julie King said: "Access to the river at this remote location proved very challenging for the crews involved in the incident. 

“It was very dark and cold and the teams had covered quite some distance on foot, sometimes running in full kit, to locate the casualty. 

“They worked hard and with ingenuity to bring the casualty to safety."

Emergency services did not know how the man came to be in the river and told The Argus  they couldn't confirm whether he had attended Lewes Bonfire the night before.

Crews left the scene at around 6.15am.