A MAN drowned as he attempted to swim across the River Tees yesterday - despite the desperate efforts of two friends to save him.

They were unable to reach the man, in his early 20s, and a major operation was launched, involving a helicopter and rescue boats .

A witness, who asked not to be named, said he saw two men attempting to swim across the river just downstream of the Victoria Bridge at Stockton.

"It looked like two of them had dived in together trying to cross the river," he said. "One made it but the other one got into trouble as he approached the middle area of the river.

"Another one of them dived in but it was getting increasingly desperate and he was under the water by the time the police and fire brigade turned up. It was just awful."

The tragedy happened at about 2.30pm yesterday afternoon at the bridge, which is close to the Castlegate Shopping Centre.

His two friends managed to swim back to the bank and together with a third friend, who had collapsed on the bank with shock, were taken to the University Hospital of North Tees in Stockton. None of the three, who are also in their early 20s, are thought to be seriously hurt.

Martin Holden, station officer at Thornaby Fire Station, said that the man had disappeared beneath the water by the time his team arrived with the rescue boat minutes after being alerted.

Two boats from the nearby Tees Barrage were also deployed in an attempt to rescue the man and then later to try to recover his body.

Mr Holden said: "I was told that he was trying to swim right across the river and his friend and another man tried to save him. The other two men were already out by the time we arrived.

"All we could do was patrol the area to see if the body surfaced and we had grab hooks to try and find the body.

"We stayed for about two-and-a-half hours until the police divers arrived from Newcastle."

Scores of townspeople watched as the fire brigade, police helicopter, ambulance and police searched the river.

Eventually, the pedestrian bridge had to be closed and the public directed further away from the drama as police and rescue workers extended the search area.

Ron Thomas, a retired van driver from Thornaby, said life-rescue rings - which could have saved the man - had been removed from the riverside.

However Mr Holden said that on the Teesdale Park or Thornaby side of the river, where the man dived in, the rescue rings were still in place - although on the Stockton side of the river they were often vandalised and stolen.