A PARISH priest has told how a calm Sunday morning stroll turned into an episode of high drama after witnessing a man fall into the River Mersey.

Father Tom Gagie, who is the parish priest at St Thomas of Canterbury Church in Dentons Green, was taking an early morning walk on Liverpool Pier Head before last Sunday’s weekly morning mass.

Making his way towards the Albert Dock just after 6am he saw a young man on the dock wall tumble into the banks of the River Mersey, a drop of around 40 feet.

He raised the alarm to the police, helping to ensure that the man was rescued safe and well before the tide came back in.

“It was a lovely sunny morning, and I saw a young man with long hair,” said Father Tom, who has also recently become parish priest at St Mary’s Lowe House.

“The tide was out and he seemed to be mumbling something and was acting quite strangely and just disappeared.

“I was very shocked and I hadn’t brought my mobile phone but the police headquarters was only half a mile away so I got in the car and saw three officers in the Gate House and told them.

“They told me to leave it with them so I went back and by the time I got there a number of officers and security guards were there but no body.

“The launch crew found that he had crawled into a hole in the river wall. I think he’d survived the fall primarily because of the mud.

“They came in and took him away. I was very relieved that he seemed to get attention quickly and I was very impressed by the rescue services.

“It’s strange in a way because my grandfather had saved a life 100 years ago in a similar spot near Pier Head in 1914.”

A spokesman from Merseyside police said: “We can confirm that a member of the public raised the alarm at the Gate House and helped show a patrol where he had fallen.

“The police alerted the coastguard and fire services and the man was rescued.

“He was taken by an ambulance to the Royal Liverpool University hospital.

The man, from north Liverpool, was found to have no injuries after being checked and told hospital staff that the fall had been an accident after having had too much to drink.”