Emergency services were mobilised on Wednesday morning after a man was spotted paddling in the River Thames.

A member of the public on Battersea Bridge called the Tower RNLI at approximately 7am on July 20, reporting that a man was "potentially in difficulty on the shoreline".

The coastguard was informed and asked the RNLI to mobilise, and the Metropolitan Police and London Ambulance also attended the scene. 

According to the RNLI, when rescuers arrived, they found a man who had "pulled his trousers up and had been essentially paddling in the river".

An RNLI spokesman said: "He appeared to be finished and walking away, but the passer-by must have seen him at  just the right moment to cause them concern.

"He was aged about 30-40 and had clearly been drinking as he was quite inebriated."

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