A HUSBAND leapt into action to save another man’s life after he was seen struggling in the water in Weymouth in the early hours.

Coastguards, lifeboat crew, paramedics and police were alerted to reports of ‘two casualties in the water’ on the marina side of Westham Bridge at 3am on Saturday.

Rescuers said it appears the first man ended up in the water after trying to jump from Westham Bridge onto a marina pontoon but failed. A member of the public was passing and tried to assist by jumping in.

The two men, both believed to be in their 30s, were out of the water and on a pontoon when rescuers arrived so were transported to shore by the lifeboat.

They were "cold, confused and had ingested water" and were taken to Dorset County Hospital for checks. The 'Good Samaritan' appeared to be in the worst condition, a lifeboat spokesman said.

Coastguards were then stood down shortly after 4am.

Wyke Coastguard station officer Mark Fagg said the situation could have been much worse if the pair weren't rescued when they were.

He said a member of the public called 999 after hearing a man splashing in the water and believed him to be drowning.

A married couple then came along and the husband went into the water.

Mr Fagg said: “We would not advise going into the water to rescue anyone else.

“We would instead ask people to call 999 and leave the rescue to the professionals, as people could put their own lives at risk.

“Having said that a thank you must go to the husband who tried, very bravely, to save the other man’s life.”

The incident comes after the RNLI revealed 38 people lost their lives in the waters off Dorset’s coast in the past five years.

The charity released the figures as it launched its Respect the Water drowning prevention campaign ahead of the busy summer season.

People have died from drowning whilst doing activities such as coasteering, fishing and swimming, the charity said. Slips and falls were the cause of most deaths.

In Dorset, five lives were lost last year and six were lost in 2013.

In 2012, 13 people died when in the water, five lost their lives in 2011 and nine people died in 2010.