Steve Morrisey was taking a stroll around Tring Reservoirs with his wife Annabel and their two young children on Sunday (January 4) when he heard ice cracking and calls for help.

He rushed over to the edge of Marsworth Reservoir where 66 year old Les Kibble was almost completely submerged in the cold water.

"I heard a sort of cracking and I just thought someone was throwing stones across the ice. I saw a woman disappear down one of the embankments and then I heard her crying out for help. At that point I thought a dog had gone in," said Mr Morrisey.

"I looked down and a man was in the water on his back with most of his body in the water. He was completely out cold."

The 35-year-old, of Bierton in Bucks, did not hesitate to jump into the water up to his waist and pull Mr Kibble out before emergency services arrived.

He added: "He was in and out of consciousness . A woman who knew first aid helped and we all used our jackets and jumpers to try and keep
him warm. He was shaking like mad."

Ngozi Fakeye, a spokesman for South Central Ambulance Service, credited Mr Morrisey with saving retired Mr Kibble's life.

He had been out walking with his wife Ann when the accident happened and was air-lifted to Stoke Mandeville Hospital with a head injury.

Speaking from his home after being discharged from hospital, he said: "I don't remember a great deal but I just want to thank the people who assisted me.

"I was walking along the path when I slipped and fell in. The next thing I remember is being in the air-ambulance.

"I'm very thankful to the public - Steve who was first on the scene, other people that threw their coats and jackets on me and of course the paramedics and the air-ambulance service."

Mr Kibble, who needed six stitches in his head, lives near to his rescuer in the same village but the pair had never met before that day.

They plan to stay in touch. Mr Morrisey said: "It's a small world. He lives just half a mile around the corner from me."

Eye witness Francis Rice, who was at the reservoirs taking photos of wildlife, saw the dramatic rescue. The 49 year old of Longdean Park in Hemel Hempstead said: "It was bitterly cold. There was at least two or three inches of ice on the reservoir."