'Dead body' found floating on River Trent actually alive

A 'dead body' found floating on the River Trent in Nottinghamshire was actually still alive, even though it had been in the water for about an hour.

The apparently-dead elderly woman was found in the Nottinghamshire river after the captain of a pleasure boat reported seeing a 'body 'floating in the water at Colwick Marina on Tuesday.

This is Nottingham reports that when police arrived a life ring was thrown out to her her but when she didn't respond officers feared she was dead.

PC Mat Mitchell said: "Her head was slightly submerged and she really did look dead. Then, in one of the most bizarre experiences of my career, she opened her eyes.

"She had the most piercing blue eyes – it was so bizarre. I stripped off and jumped in the water - she was about 20 metres away - and swam her back to the bank.

"She had been floating in the river for about an hour but was surprisingly well despite the ordeal."

The BBC reports that the woman, thought to be in her 70s, was pulled to the bank at Colwick Marina and taken to hospital. She is expected to be discharged soon.

Speaking to the BBC, PC Mitchell joked: "It's certainly not every day you go wading into the water.

"I'd like to say it was like a scene from Baywatch but it was actually very cold and I'm not quite as chiselled as David Hasselhoff.

"We were preparing for the worst so it was so nice that this had a happy ending."

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