A TEENAGER has told of the moment he and his brother rescued their stepdad who was stuck up to his shoulders in sinking mud.

At first Edward Wickens, who wants to be a firefighter, thought his mum was joking when she told him what had happened.

Her husband Stuart Watson had been drinking after an argument and had wandered on to the mudflats near Corinthian Manorway, Erith, and could not get out of the mud.

But when Edward got there at around 10.30pm yesterday (January 26) with his brother Andrew, 18, they heard their stepdad’s shouts for help.

It was dark but the light from the pier meant they could just see his head and shoulders and one of his arms which was clutching on to his mobile phone.

Bexley College student Edward said: “When we first saw him he was not moving at all and we thought we weren’t going to get him out.

“We were just acting on instinct and we jumped over the wall and I ran and grabbed my stepdad.

“Me and my brother linked arms and then we tried pulling and we just kept yanking and yanking.

“We were there for about 20 minutes trying to get him to come out.”

The boys eventually managed to get him out and took him to the road where they sat him down until the firefighters arrived.

He was said to be suffering from hypothermia when the crews arrived so they gave him oxygen and a blanket to warm him up before he was taken to Darent Valley Hospital, Dartford.

The 38-year-old discharged himself that night and was at work as a tyre fitter this morning.

Edward said: “It was scary seeing your stepdad shouting for help.

“If it had been any longer then his head could have been down under the mud.

“Hopefully he won’t do that again.”

Borough fire commander Cyril O’Brien said the fire brigade had carried out a number of similar rescues from the mudflats.

He added: "The Thames and its foreshore have hidden hazards and must be treated with respect. "People should not go onto the foreshore unless they have a good reason and know what they are doing and should consider wearing high visibility clothing.

"Potential hazards include rapidly rising tides, deep and soft mud, wash from vessels, slip and trip hazards, slippery steps and broken glass."

If you see someone in difficulty, phone 999.