A 17-YEAR-OLD youth was plucked to safety in a dramatic rescue mission in Weymouth after becoming trapped up to his waist in deep mud.

Rescuers said he went into shock as he was pulled free and was airlifted to hospital by the coastguard rescue helicopter.

More than 20 firefighters using specialist equipment helped in the rescue in the Fleet lagoon, assisted by paramedics.

The teenager, who lives locally, was walking his dog when he got into difficultly at 8.45am yesterday along the vast stretch of lagoon behind the Wyke Regis Bridging Camp.

His girlfriend alerted the emergency services from the shore but by the time crews arrived the teenager was already waist deep in mud.

It took an hour and a half for the rescue crews to pluck the teenager from the deep mud before the Portland Coastguard helicopter was able to airlift him to Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester. Technical trained crews from Weymouth, Poole, and a special wading crew from Bridport attended the rescue.

Leading the operation for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service was Dave Myers who said: “When we first got there the teenager was laughing and joking but as the rescue was under way he started getting faint and went into a shock, rather like an anaphylactic shock. “When we arrived he was stuck in deep mud but within 10 minutes it was round his waist.

“The Fleet is tidal and the water had started to come back in so the incident escalated and we knew he had to be airlifted by the helicopter to DCH.

“The problem is the pressure of the mud starts to cause medical difficulties – and when he was airlifted he was in a serious but stable state.”

The fire service welcomed a phone call from the teenager’s mum to thank everyone involved in the rescue.

Weymouth sector manager for Portland Coastguard Rob Sansom has been involved with the rescue of many people over the years at the Fleet.

He said: “My advice would be to always stay on the land where you know you are safe.

“The Fleet tends to be sticky mud in places especially at Ferrybridge because the silt builds up and makes the ground stodgy.

“Quite often there is even grass growing so it looks like it would be okay to walk on when actually is it unstable.

“People should also remember that it is tidal and that getting stuck in the mud could easily result in a dangerous situation.”

He added that in the past there have been cases of fishermen and boat users getting stuck in the mud in the Fleet.

As well as the obvious risks of hypothermia, other dangers of being stuck in the mud include biological diseases.

Warrant Officer Anthony Cowburn of the Wyke Regis training area said: “We went down to see if they needed a hand but the fire brigade had everything under control using specialist equipment to rescue the man.”